Trading Places
by CoolCarrot
Summary: Merlin and Arthur switch bodies accidentally. A certain, someone's magic is revealed, and the boys' have to go on a quest in search of a cure - all so they can return to their own bodies again. Friendship only. ON HOLD.
1. Prologue

**Trading Places**

**A/N: Okay, I think you will enjoy this; I have just really wanted to try writing a Merlin Fic. :)**

**And yes! I have finally got around to posting this story, yay!**

**This fic is going to be about Merlin and Arthur trading places with lots of interesting things happening along the way. It is set after _'The Sorcerer's Shadow'_ and before _'The Coming of Arthur'_. Morgana and Morgause both know about Merlin's magic and they want to dispose of him because he keeps foiling their plans. I won't give anymore away for now and I will try to update every one to two days. Warning, this fic contains spoilers.**

**Also, when I use italics it tells you what one of the characters is thinking/saying to themselves in their head, used to emphasize words or to highlight something. I think you can work it out. **

**And just for a heads up, I use imperial _and_ metric measurements in this story. So have a translator-thinga-ma-bob ready if you don't know both and are really into understanding detail.**

**This chapter is a prologue because I reckon it's needed. I believe that the next chapter will be much more entertaining so I'll try post it today. **

**For those who like to read whilst listening to music…. Whilst reading this, listen to, _'A Distance There Is' _by_ 'Theatre of Tragedy'._**

**Disclaimer: I own the plot of this chapter/story but not Merlin or the music. :(**

**Please read! :)**

**Prologue: **

The full moon was shone brightly over the many tall trees; the wind forceful and roughly rustling the leaves. Rain lapped ruthlessly at everything it reached. It was a bitter stormy night in the Darkling Woods

But this didn't stop the navy-cloaked figure from lingering in the cold shady clearing.

The woman stood strong, never unfazed by the harsh downpour - her wet blonde locks weighing down heavily from all the rain. But she wasn't standing there for any ordinary reason; she was waiting for something – or should she say _someone_?

After around ten minutes of standing in the clearing's centre, the sorceress noticed movement in the bushes ahead of her. Within the next second, she saw a woman cloaked in a deep blood-red stride elegantly towards her.

"Sister," said the woman in navy-blue. She spoke in a kind tone, "you have come at last. What kept you?" Her eyes lit up with curiosity.

The sorceress cloaked in crimson halted half a metre before her sister prior to speaking. "My handmaiden, Gwen held me back. She seemed suspicious so I had to convince her otherwise." said the youngest sister, a sincere expression on her pale face.

"That's quite alright –" A flash of lightning exploded in the sky less than a second before the loud sound of thunder rolled out less than a mile away. The raven-haired woman jumped in fright. Though, the blonde acted as if nothing had happened. She continued speaking. "– I sincerely hope you _did_ manage to convince her. We do not have the time to deal with someone else knowing of where your loyalties lie." She placed her hand on the youngest woman's soft, wet cheek and used her thumb to wipe away some of the rain drops that had reached her face. Her cupped hand stayed pressed against her accomplice's left cheek.

"Oh, I believe I did," assured the woman cloaked in red. She placed her hand over her sister's. "The servant has been relieved of her duties for the rest of the night, just so she won't accidentally come into my chambers to find the Lady Morgana's bed has yet to be slept in."

"You have done well." praised the eldest sister. She removed her hand from her sister's face.

"Let us get out of this rain, sister." said Morgana lifting the hood of her cloak back over her head. Returning to Camelot unnoticed would be much harder the wetter she was; the woman also didn't plan on catching a cold.

"If you wish. We shall take shelter beneath the old weeping willow," Morgana's half-sister gestured in front of herself. Morgana turned her head scanning the area.

"Where is it?" she asked curiously. All she could see was moist bare earth.

"Do not use your eyes, sister. Clear your mind; let your magic fill you up. Let it guide you." Morgause spoke knowledgeably.

Morgana closed her eyes. She tried to be free of herself – of her thoughts. Free of her worries, tried to forget her troubles. The raven-haired woman took several slow deep breaths in through her mouth before exhaling through her nose.

She listened to the quiet movements that played out around her. At first, all she could hear was the rain bucketing down from every side and angle. But then she started to hear the smaller, simpler sounds of nature.

The sound of rustling leaves began to fill her ears; she could hear the fast beating of wings emit from tiny insects. She could smell the cool air and moist grass – all the sweet aromas of nature. She could feel her warm leather boots gradually sink further and further into the muddy earth beneath her feet. She could feel the cold wind tousling the thin wisps of hair that escaped the veil of her hood.

It was then that Morgana suddenly began to feel a glorious warm wrap around her body like a cocoon. She could feel her magic seeping through her limbs; flowing through her body.

The witch's eyes snapped open. There in front of her, was a huge weeping willow. She exhaled through a smile of disbelief. 

Morgause smiled at her reaction; she had been meaning to show Morgana this but there never really came a proper time. In actual fact, this willow tree was the main reason why Morgause always chose to meet her sister here. 

Morgana hadn't expected to see such a magnificent sight. She forgot about the icy water covering her from head to toe and just stared at the willow in awe.

It was enormous; at least 170 feet in height; she had to crane her head upwards to see the peak. The willow almost looked as if it were glowing. Its large drooping branches shimmered beautifully against the wet atmosphere; its dark-green leaves swayed softly in the wind. The trunk of the tree was _huge_ too; the dark moist wood was probably about seven feet wide

Morgana knew that this was no ordinary weeping willow of course. She could feel the raw magic radiating from it – the abnormal glow of the tree gave this away as well. It was also obvious that a regular willow would never reach this size.

"As you may have already noticed, this is no mundane weeping willow; only those with magic can see it." said Morgause; she began walking towards the tree. "This tree was created by a powerful sorcerer centuries ago. The willow's seed was planted with magic." she paused, "It is a very mystical tree that was once a home to many peaceful men, women and children who all obtained our gift. Though they usually only used their magic for healing and helping others in need. Those people used to live their entire lives beneath this very tree," she gestured around herself.

"Those people were known as the _'Salix Magicalis Volgus,_ meaning, _'Magical Willow Common Folk' _– but these days, most simply know them as the _'Salmagvols. _It has always been an excellent shelter and medical provider for the Salmagvols and all other magical people alike. The bark of this willow is much more powerful than any other because it is entwined with magic." explained Morgause as she took a few more steps forward so she was completely covered from the harsh rain. The youngest sister followed suit.

"Where did the Salmagvol's go?" asked Morgana. As she waited for her sister's answer the sorceress walked up to the large trunk of the willow and pressed her palm, flat against it. She jumped slightly in shock as the tree sent what felt like sparks, through her body. Though she soon she became used to it as she kept her hand against the tree. Morgana began to feel as if she was meant to be here; it felt as if it was apart of her. The willow made her feel warm and safe.

The feeling that the witch was currently experiencing, felt rather similar to how it was when using her gift – except the tree's sensation was a much more powerful one.

Those splendid feelings were one of the main reasons she sometimes practiced magic. It made her feel safe an _in_vulnerable. Even though she hadn't been here long, Morgana already understood why those people had lived here. If she could choose to live anywhere, it would definitely be underneath this weeping willow.

Morgana was snapped out of her thoughts when her sister began speaking again. She moved her hand back down to her side, breaking her connection with the tree.

"All was peaceful until the Great Purge when that tyrant, _Uther_," Morgause spat the name out harshly, "slaughtered most of the people and forced the remaining ones to flee." the sorceress didn't shout but instead spoke loudly and fiercely.

Morgana's peaceful state had changed into a stiff and enraged one. "That man is absolutely infuriating!" she shouted heatedly; her pale cheeks becoming flushed with anger.

How could that _monster_ kill or drive away all those peaceful people from such a beautiful place? Who not to mention, most likely didn't even have a choice on whether they had magic or not.

Suddenly, Morgana felt her eyes burn brightly – though only at a comfortable, pleasurable temperature – and saw a small shrub a few metres away catch fire.

"_Tollite flammis_." said Morgause in her usual speaking tone. She flicked her right hand to the side. The flames consuming the shrub disappeared and the once green plant was left blackened.

"Sorry." said Morgana meekly.

"You don't have to be sorry for your gifts. One day you will gain control of your powers," said Morgause confidently. "_Retro ad inenormos status_," the sorceress then chanted. The lifeless shrub regained its dark green colouring. "We can't have people knowing we were here." stated the eldest sister.

There was silence for a moment before it was shattered with words once again. "Now, I requested you to meet me here because I want to know your synopsis on the boy, _Merlin_. Do you think he has magic?" Morgause raised her eyebrows briefly.

"I am not completely certain but I have a strong belief he _does_. I overheard Gaius, the Court Physician, talking to him the other day – well, perhaps it wasn't exactly like talking; more like shouting." explained Morgana.

"Oh?" said Morgause in a way which told Morgana that she wanted more information. The youngest sorceress continued to speak.

"He was scolding Merlin on something magic related. I'm guessing for using his powers needlessly. It seems like something he would do."

"Is there anything else that tells you he may be a sorcerer?" asked Morgause interestingly.

"Yes," Morgana paused, "He has been alleged of sorcery three times but has unfortunately managed to escape each without punishment," the youngest witch paused again, "Another time was when I tried to frame Gwen so she was accused of sorcery."

"Was that because of the strong vision you had had? Where your handmaiden was wed with Arthur?" Morgause was certain she was speaking about the correct prophecy her half-sister had seen, but she just had to make sure.

"Yes, that is the one." replied Morgana.

"Do continue, sister."

"Anyway, Gwen had just been accused of enchanting Arthur. When suddenly, an old sorcerer who called himself _Dragoon the Great_ came into the picture. He revealed himself to Uther, when he could have easily escaped with magic. This old man even claimed that _he_ was the sorcerer who'd framed Gwen and that she was innocent. He said that _he _had planted the poultice to enchant Gwen and Arthur – maid and prince – so that it would bring 'shame on Camelot'. But I know he was lying because I was the one who planted the poultice. I also know that Arthur and Gwen's feelings for each other are as real as you and I, so he couldn't have enchanted them either way."

"What has this got to do with Merlin being a sorcerer?" asked Morgana cocking her head to the side in interest and curiosity.

"Well, I believe Merlin _was _Dragoon the Great." said Morgana smiling.

"What makes you say this?" asked Morgause.

"I believe he temporarily aged himself so he could say he was the sorcerer and save Gwen's life," said Morgana speaking slowly. "I noticed in that period of time, Merlin wasn't around at all. Gwen is one of his best friends, so it strikes me curious that he wasn't around to say goodbye to her before the execution day.

"I also remember looking into that old sorcerer's eyes. I thought that they looked rather familiar; they looked like _Merlin's_ eyes," the sorceress paused, "Anyway, who in their right mind would sacrifice themselves for someone they didn't even know?" she said, speaking at her usual speed again.

"I believe you're onto something there, sister… It seems like something Merlin would do – sacrifice himself for all those around him. And if he _is _truly this 'Dragoon the Great', I'm betting he made that name up on the spot. I would most likely believe he was thinking of the _Great Dragon_ when he invented it." said Morgause knowingly.

"So do you think he is a sorcerer?" asked Morgana.

"I wouldn't put it past him."

"But why would he want to protect _Uther_," Morgana spat out the word like it was deadly poison, "the one who slaughters out kind?" said Morgana scowling. She could hardly even say his name without thinking terrible thoughts about that king.

"I don't know, but he is in our way – sorcerer or not – Merlin needs to be disposed of." said Morgause seriously.

"Indeed." said Morgana smirking.

"Keep observing him for now and when the time comes we _will_ kill Merlin."

**I know that chapter didn't have much action in, but the next chapter will…. (anyway, when are prologues ever full of action?) :) I just needed Morgana and Morgause to suspect that Merlin has magic. That way it makes the story a whole lot more interesting. :)**

**Translations (Latin to English):**

•_**Tollite flammis**_**. = **_**Take away the flames.**_

•_**Retro ad inenormos status. Back to the state of normal.**_

**Now please review! :)**


	2. Chapter 1: A New Conception

**Trading Places**

**Well, here's chapter one. :)**

**Warnings for this chapter: ****Arthur accidentally hurts Merlin and both boys get into an argument.**

**Please Read This****: Just to let you know, I always find that when I read books to music, it so much more interesting. Just open a new tab for each song before hand and go onto YouTube. Then play each one when it's the songs turn. Please note that not all songs will finish on time. It depends on how fast you read.**

•**At the start, when you see this symbol, *****-*-*-*, listen to,**_** 'Iris' **_**by **_**'Goo Goo Dolls'. **_

•**When you see this symbol, *****-*1*-*****,**__**listen to,**_** 'Nara' **_**by **_**'E.S. Posthumus'.**_

•**When you see this symbol, *****-*2*-*,**__**listen to, **_**'Cuzco' **_**by **_**'E.S. Posthumus' (will finish early).**_

**But you don't have to, if you don't want to…. It's optional but please do!**

**I reckon it just makes the writing so much better. For more info on music listening go to my profile. :) **

**Also, I'm setting up a playlist for this story on YouTube. That way you can just click on my channel on YouTube, and the songs are already there! **

**The playlist is called **_**'Trading Places Playlist Ch 1'**_** and the link to my channel is below:**

**.com**

**/user/g2lm4l?feature=mhum#g/a**

**Also…. Now that I think about it.… I probably won't be able to post every one to two days … sorry….**

**Disclaimer: I own the plot of this chapter/story, but sadly not Merlin or the music….**

**Now without further ado, please read and I hope you enjoy it. :D **

**Chapter One: A New Conception**

***-*-*-*** "Rise and shine!" Merlin shouted happily, while he pulled the curtains of Arthur's chambers open. The sun beamed through, right onto the Crown Prince of Camelot's bed, just where the prince lay.

"Merlin!" Arthur shouted angrily as he shielded his eyes from the sun with his right hand. "You know, one day I am going to go blind so close the god damn curtains!" Arthur sat up in his bed. "Why can't you just leave the curtains closed?" Merlin was used to Arthur's angry behaviour and did not take it personally. He knew the prince was not a morning person.

"If I were to do that, you would never get up," replied Merlin cheekily, now walking towards the closet to pick out Arthur's clothes for the day. "And it is much more fun this way." he said to himself quietly, hoping the prince would not hear.

"Merlin!" Arthur shouted again, now standing up and searching for something to throw.

_Damn it, _thought Merlin. _He heard. _Merlin continued looking through Arthur's closet; his side turned at the prince.

Next to himself, Arthur picked up a dish with fruit on it. He emptied the dish and then shot it at his servant. It knocked the boy straight on the temple of his head, causing him to fall onto his side and onto the ground.

"Merlin!" Arthur shouted for the third time, trying not to show the worry in his voice. "Are you alright?" he said, rushing to the raven-haired boy. There was no reply. Arthur fell on to his knees and turned Merlin over on to his back so he could check if he was okay. Arthur noticed some blood trickling down the right side of his servants head.

_Oh no, _thought Arthur. He put his hand on Merlin's chest to check if he was breathing. _Thank god. _ Merlin was still breathing. Suddenly, his servant opened his eyes and stared into the azure ones looking back at him. Then the boy let out a big smile.

"Scared you, didn't I?" said Merlin trying to hold back laughter. "I wasn't faking it though; I did get knocked out because everything went black for a while." he blabbed.

"Merlin…." growled Arthur.

"You should have seen your face, not that I meant to make this situation seem so funny. It just is." said the boy as he picked himself up into a sitting position, with his hand holding his head. "Don't worry; my head doesn't hurt too much."

"For that, you are going to have to muck out the stables." said Arthur ignoring his servant.

"I thought I was already going to muck out the stables and why are you punishing me for something you caused, to make me get hurt?" asked Merlin in a small, innocent voice.

"I am punishing you because it is fun and I will take any chance I get to punish an idiot like you. You also brought this on yourself by saying you enjoyed opening my curtains." explained Arthur, secretly trying to hide that he was worried about his servant. He was only punishing the boy because for some reason, he felt it was another way of punishing himself, for being stupid by throwing that dish.

"I am not an idiot." said Merlin as his smile turned into a frown. He wasn't really that angry at being called a name but he didn't like it how Arthur was punishing him for no good reason. "If you could see what I could do to you…." he said slowly but angrily. Merlin usually would not mind being called an idiot but he did not like the way Arthur used it this time. _If he knew…, _thought Merlin._ If he just knew what I could do with my magic._

"Oh, and what's that supposed to mean?" asked Arthur loudly whilst raising an eyebrow. Merlin knew he should not have said his last sentence but he did not care. He was sick of being treated like this. Over and over again he would save Arthur's life but get no credit for it. This was the breaking point for Merlin.

"All you do is treat me like dirt and hurt me. Do you have any idea, how many times _I _have had to save your life? I have done it so many times, I have now lost count! I have to risk myself for you, all the time and nearly nobody even knows that it was me who did it!" Merlin shouted, thinking back to the time with the questing beast and how he gambled his life but nearly lost his mothers instead. "Even if I did take credit for what I had done, you would probably have to kill me afterward because I would need to tell you the truth about me, for you to believe my words!" yelled Merlin fiercely, his cheeks now bright pink and heart drumming fast. "I just want you to know who I am." Merlin whispered quietly, his eyes burning with unshed tears.

Arthur was utterly confused. He could always easily detect lies in Merlin but this time he could not sense even one. How could Merlin be telling the truth though, it was not as if he had learnt how to lie over night or something. And he already knew who Merlin was. "What do you mean, 'save my life so may times you have lost count'?" Arthur asked, narrowing his eyes into tiny slits on his servant. "You haven't saved me that much, or can't you count?" Arthur let out a small laugh.

"See! That's what I am talking about! You have no idea you have even been saved, let alone by me! And now you even think of it as a joke! I don't even know why I try so hard to save your life, next time I should just leave you to die. Then you won't think it's funny!" Merlin shouted, trying extremely hard to choke back tears. He knew he would never let Arthur die but he was only saying this because it really annoyed him that his best friend – no, his friend – was laughing at him.

"Oh, and by the way. You know how you said I had already asked you to clean up the stables. You can muck them out for a week now, Merlin." said Arthur, pretending not to hear Merlin's last few sentences.

As Arthur finished his words, Merlin stood up. He was still holding his head as he turned around and then began walking toward the door. As soon as he reached it he turned around again to face the prince.

"If that's the way you're going to treat me, you can forget about me as your servant. It's not as if you would care though. Or else you wouldn't have thrown that dish," Tears were still swelling up in Merlin's eyes. "Until you change, Arthur … you will not have me working for you." said Merlin softly. Taking one last look at the prince, he opened the door and let himself out.

"Hey! I never said you could leave." Arthur may have been acting angrily but he really just wanted to act all kind and friendly again. It was something that a real friend should do but he was acting to cowardly to do it. Firstly, he would have to apologise which he didn't like doing. Secondly, he was the prince and he couldn't just have mood swings like that. Or could he – he'd already done it plenty of times before (not that Arthur would ever admit it). Arthur decided to go with the 'being angry' option. He was on a roll now and didn't see how he could be friendly again in this point of time. "Come back here! Or do I have to come get you myself. I'm not finished with you –" Merlin slammed the door shut and the servant couldn't hear his master anymore.

**-(I~I)- **

"Forget what I said before. We should act _now_ or else that boy will _always_ be one step ahead of us," said a sorceress angrily. "There must be some way to rid ourselves of him." The woman began to pace in the clearing they were in. The usual one they met up in; the one in the Darkling Woods. As she paced her blonde hair blew softly in the cool wind of the day.

"Yes, sister. I do think we need to do something about th– this simple serving boy," stuttered a very angry Morgana, her eyes shooting sparks. "Sorcerer or not … how is he more powerful than _us?"_

"I don't exactly know how, I will look into it…. Right now we need to do something about him – I know!" exclaimed Morgause suddenly as she held her hands in front of her, fingers apart and stopped pacing. "It might just work." her eyes were wide open; a smirk on her face as she stared into her half-sister's eyes.

"What is it? What might work?" snapped Morgana, an expression mixed with confusion and anger.

"We may not have to do much at all. All we really have to do is just set up the plan up and the rest will unfold for us – that's only if he truly does have magic. If we can get Merlin to reveal his magic to Arthur, he will have his servant executed. Once that has happened, Merlin will not be in our way anymore." said Morgause triumphantly, her eyes dazzling with excitement.

"That may just work, sister. Then, Arthur will be at our mercy." smiled Morgana evilly.

**-(I~I)-**

Arthur was walking through the corridors toward Gaius' chambers, he hated apologizing but he knew he had to do it. Merlin did get very angry and he should say sorry to him just as much as he should say sorry back because he actually made Merlin cry. He felt really bad about that. He should have gone with the 'being a good friend' option and he should have been nicer in the first place. However, these were all 'should have' statements. Arthur could not change the past so he decided if the past was not good, he should change the future of their friendship by fixing it right now, at this present point of time.

***-*1*-* **_Merlin, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have punished you like that but you shouldn't have acted like an idiot – _No that was no good. Arthur continued rehearsing new ways to mend the broken friendship. _Merlin, please be my servant again. _Nope,that sounded like he was begging and it was too short. _Okay, here's the deal – _No_, _princes don't deal, they order. _Merlin … I need to tell – _Arthur was so caught up in his thoughts he didn't realize that he had just bumped into someone. He looked slightly down at a dark-skinned girl with extremely curly, black hair.

"Hello, Guinevere. _I am so sorry_, I didn't see you there." said Arthur calmly. Okay, let's put it this way. He hated apologising to, _Merlin._

"Oh no, I am the one who should be apologising. I am truly, very sorry my lord. Where are you going? Not that I want to know. I mean you don't have to tell me if you don't want to. It's just you seemed very deep in thought so it must be important." said Gwen very quickly, her cheeks turning a shade of scarlet.

"Gwen, relax. It's okay and I was only just going to see Merlin." Arthur replied, trying to calm the girl down. Guinevere certainly had a way with her words.

"Well, okay. I better let you go then and I also need to get these flowers over to the Lady Morgana." she gestured to the bright red roses she was holding. "I can't keep her waiting any longer. Toodles!" said Gwen; she then began to walk off.

_Toodles? _thought Gwen._ I couldn't have just said a simple good bye? Why did I have to say toodles? He is the prince of Camelot. Oh, well…. _Guinevere continued walking to Morgana's chambers.

_I will never understand why she is always constantly __backpedaling__ when she talks. Oh, well…. _thought Arthur, as he too, continued walking but toward Merlin's chambers.

**-(I~I)-**

Inside his chambers, Merlin was busy making himself a remedy to ease the pain from where the dish had hit him. His head was hurting more and more every minute. He had to make it himself though because his uncle wasn't home and would probably be back later tonight. Merlin figured Gaius was out collecting herbs and other things, which a physician might need. He had almost finished but he still wanted to add a touch of magic to make the remedy more effective.

The young warlock looked at his magic book, lying open on the table next to him for the spell; it said, _'Mens mos switch. Sana, sana mea cranium'. _He only had to follow these words to complete the remedy. Merlin closed the book and put it back in his bedroom in a hidden compartment, under the floorboards. He then headed toward the front door of his and Gaius' chambers so he could lock it. It was something Gaius always made him do. He always said it was for _'extra precautions'_ and that '_you can never be too careful'._

As he walked to the front door, he started the spell; to impatient to actually wait a few seconds, until the door was bolted shut. It wasn't as if anyone would come in, at this exact point in time though. Merlin's eyes glowed gold as he spoke words, which were forbidden in Camelot, and he held his hand with his fingers spread out; just hovering over the remedy. "Mens mos switch –"The raven-haired boy was cut off because just as he reached the door, it suddenly swung open. The old tough wood hitting him square in the face. It didn't only cause him more pain but it also caused him to drop the remedy, which smashed, on the ground, liquid spilling everywhere.

"What was that?" said Arthur to himself in a confused voice. _Oh well..., _thought Arthur. _It was probably just me…. _ The blond-haired boy opened the door. "Merlin, I just came to apologise about what happened earlier – Merlin? Where are you?"

"Down here." sighed Merlin. He was lying down on his back; his elbows propping him up.

"What are you doing down there, Mer– oh – I didn't do that, did I?" asked Arthur curiously as he looked down at the boy below him. There was a bruise forming on Merlin's forehead.

"Well, you're a slow one, aren't you? You did 'do that', Arthur." said Merlin cheekily.

"Well, come on, get up," Arthur offered his hand to Merlin. Merlin hesitated. He knew that if he took Arthur's hand, it was another way of saying he had forgiven the prince. But did he forgive him? Merlin grabbed his master's hand and Arthur pulled him up. The answer was 'yes', he forgave him. Merlin was glad Arthur had come down to apologise even though he should be the one saying sorry. He did say a heck of a lot of terrible things to his master.

"Thanks." said Merlin happily with a smile. Arthur smiled back. Merlin had finally returned; he would give anything to see that smile of his again. Even though it had only been a few hours, the slightly shorter boy had missed his servant.

"Thanks for what?" asked Arthur, still smiling.

"Thanks for apologizing and helping me up." replied Merlin.

"Well, it was only right, I shouldn't have punished you and I was the one who opened the door, which happened to hit you," Arthur explained happily. "I'm sorry and Merlin…."

"Mmm hmm…."

Arthur hesitated for a second but then said "Yeah, I shouldn't have done what I did to you." And, with those simple words, Merlin walked to the prince and put his arms around him. This shocked Arthur at first but then he did something he never thought he would do. Arthur returned the brotherly hug by pulling Merlin awkwardly into a tighter embrace.

"Arth– Arthur –" muttered Merlin quietly, in a voice, which was hard to very hear.

"Yes?"

"I – I – can't breathe –"

"Oh…," Arthur let go of Merlin who was gasping for breath. "Sorry, I didn't realise…." The prince felt his cheeks rise in colour.

"It's okay." Merlin said calmly; his breathing evening out again.

The two boys looked at each other for a very long time, just staring into each other's deep, blue eyes and both lost for words. Arthur looked around the room for something to distract him from the awkward situation of looking into his servant's eyes.

"What's that?" Arthur pointed to the ground where the remedy had shattered.

"Huh, what?" asked the young warlock startled. "Oh – tha … that's just a remedy Gaius asked me to make for one of his patients, my lord." Merlin lied.

"Oh, I didn't know Gaius asked you to make remedies for him…. Why were you at the door if you were making the remedy?" asked Arthur playing along with his servants blatant lying.

"You know sire." replied Merlin looking down at the ground shuffling his feet around.

"No, I don't, Merlin. That's why I'm asking you." he continued staring.

"Umm … er –" stuttered Merlin as he began fidgeting with the tattered hem of his tunic. "I was just about to deliver it." The warlock looked up at the prince and gave a small smile. Merlin was only being untruthful because he just didn't want his master to worry about him. He hated being fussed over.

"Merlin…," said Arthur slowly. "Tell me the truth. I _can _tell when you are lying."

"Well…," Merlin knew there was no point in trying to lie to this person so he decided to just give in. After all, his head was pounding which made him far too tired to win this battle. Not that he won any battles anyway – except with lots of evil, magical, baddies. "Well, that was a remedy that I was going to use to make some of the pain to my head, go away. After you threw that dish, my head has gotten sorer every minute.

"Oh, wha– what's so bad about that. Wh– why did you need to lie?" Arthur found it very hard to speak, the words kept getting stuck in his throat. He felt extremely guilty about throwing that dish at his servant when he meant no harm.

"Well, I didn't want you to feel bad or to worry about me." said Merlin with a small voice, rubbing one foot on top of the other. Similar to what a small child would do if they had been naughty.

"I will be the judge of what makes me feel guilty. But, yes. You were quite right. I do feel terrible for throwing that damn dish," said Arthur. He hated showing emotion but he didn't want to lie to Merlin after what he did to him. "You know, they should make wooden vials for remedies. It would prevent people like you breaking them all the time." said Arthur with a smirk.

"You know, it's not really that wise to do that…." said Merlin swaying and holding his arms behind his back.

"Why ever not?" asked Arthur curiously; raising an eyebrow. "You just carve a wooden shaped container and put the liquid in."

Merlin stopped moving and suddenly stuck four fingers in the air. "Well, let's see now…. Firstly, the remedy will not last as long if it is in wood…," Merlin put down one finger. "Secondly, it is easier to drink in glass…," Another finger went down. "Thirdly, if it's in wood, you can't see what is in the vial…," Another finger. "And fourthly, wood does not work well with all liquids." Merlin said, putting down the last and final finger. "Everybody knows that." said Merlin, speaking as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"I didn't." said Arthur simply as he stared at his servant in hidden astonishment. He never knew Merlin knew so much about little things like vials. But he guessed he would know too, if his mentor was a physician.

"Well, everybody with brains knows that." said Merlin smiling cheekily.

"Shut up, Merlin." said Arthur giving Merlin a menacing look.

***-*2*-*** "What gave me away when I was lying? I need to know for the future." asked Merlin ignoring Arthur's last statement.

"I don't really want to tell you but since you are so bad at lying, I don't think it will make a difference," said Arthur smiling. "Where do I begin…? Well, actually, I don't know, maybe it was because of your fidgeting and shuffling around. Or it could have been your stuttering and looking away," said Arthur sarcastically, holding a hand on his chin and looking up. "God knows why you even try. You can't hide anything from me, Merlin." he said in a friendly way and punched the raven-haired boy in the shoulder.

Merlin yelped. "My god, can you punch any harder? And you'd be surprised what I can hide from you." said Merlin as he rubbed his shoulder.

"Merlin, you are such a girl; I hardly punched you…. And what do you mean by 'you'd be surprised'?" asked Arthur, continuing the two conversations.

"Wow, that stinks!" said Merlin pointing at the spill on the ground. He was hoping Arthur wouldn't notice the change in subject. The servant certainly wasn't joking about the spill though. With his fingers, he held just below the bridge of his nose and started moving the air around by flapping his left hand. The fumes were absolutely disgusting "I will go and get a cloth to go and wipe up the mess –" Before he could say anymore, the young warlock's eyes rolled back and he began to fall backward. Thanks to Arthur's quick reflexes, he caught Merlin just before he hit the ground.

"Merlin! Are you alright –" Suddenly Arthur smelt the disgusting fumes too and he began to feel very weak. He accidentally dropped Merlin and felt himself falling to the floor too. Both boys were now unconscious, lying on the ground; in front of the door and right next to each other.

**One Hour Later:**

_Wow, I feel so much better. The pain in my head is gone. _Merlin sat up and looked around his chambers but he noticed something very strange. He could see himself lying down next to him.

"Whoa –" Merlin was so perplexed. He stood up feeling like a new man and walked over to his bedroom. He pushed open the door and noticed what little strength he needed. He felt _so _strong. Merlin then walked over to bowl full of water not too far away. He stood stunned as he looked down into the reflection. The boy felt like a bucket of freezing, cold ice had just been tipped all over himself. He saw sapphire blue eyes looking back at him and bright blond hair on his head. His tunic was red now and felt soft on his skin. He was currently Arthur Pendragon, the Crown Prince of Camelot.

**Well I hope you liked the first chapter. Constructive criticism is very welcome. I want to know if it totally sucked or if it was totally awesome. What you liked; what you didn't. Please click that innocent review button. You know you want to. :) And I do think Merlin and Arthur were a tad OOC in that chapter.**

**Also, if you are a smart cookie you could probably work why Merlin and Arthur switched bodies before the next chapter is up. I will give you a hint: Look up the spell Merlin said. Go to Google translate and paste the spell in (make sure it's on 'Latin' to 'English'). **

**I like Latin because I reckon it sounds good. :D Oh, and just so you know. I am sure all my Latin grammar is wrong, but I am also pretty sure the words and spelling is right.**

**By the way, please remember to review! :) Thanks for reading. The next chapter will be up in two to three days. Wow, I definitely speak way too much. I am going to shut up now. :P**


	3. Chapter 2: A Strange Discovery

**A/N:**** Okay, I have finally finished chapter two up. Just to make you happier, I will tell you that the chapters around the end should be the best and I look forward to writing them! I mean, come on? When are Merlin and Arthur quests never exciting? Especially with Morgause and **_**Smirk**_**gana **

**involved!**

**Also, thanks for all the reviews to those people who reviewed, alerted, and favourited! It really made me smile! Next chapter I think I'll give all those people a special mention and the ones who do it this chapter…. I've just wrote too long of an author's note which will eventually become longer than the story itself if I keep going!**

**To clear up some possible, future confusion:**

**It can get a bit confusing in this chapter (just to warn you) because Merlin is now Arthur and Arthur is now Merlin. To unconfuse you a bit, let's have an example: "**_**Shut up, Merlin." said Arthur. **_

**Okay, that means Arthur is saying the words but it comes through Merlin's body. So the mind of Arthur is speaking it through the body of Merlin because they have switched bodies. If they were in their own bodies, Arthur would be saying that. When I say **_**'said Arthur'**_**. I mean the mind of Arthur. **

**Wow, that was a mouthful. I hope I did not confuse you more. :|**

**Hopefully, you will be able to recognise them through their personality. The hard thing is just that you have to picture Merlin speaking but Arthur is the one who really thought up the words. I hope that will clear up any confusion but I reckon you will be able to understand it. **

**Warnings for this chapter: ****Arthur purposely hurts Merlin.**

**The music for this chapter: ****Remember to set the music up before hand….**

•**See this symbol '*****-*-*-*'****?** **Begin listening to,**_** 'Lepcis Magna' **_**by **_**'E.S. Posthumus'**_**. **

•**When you see this symbol, *****-*1*-*****, listen to,**_** 'Mosane' **_**by **_**'E.S. Posthumus'. **_

**If the music ends early, start it again until it's the next songs turn or the end of the chapter. **

**The link to my YouTube channel with all the music is on the chapter before or on my profile. ;)**

**Otherwise maybe try typing **_**'g2lm4l' **_**in YouTube search bar.**

**Disclaimer: I'm not writing this again…. I've done all the legal things in the last chapters…. So there. **

**Chapter Two: A Strange Discovery**

**Previously:**

_Wow, I feel so much better. The pain in my head is gone. _Merlin sat up and looked around his chambers but he noticed something very strange. He could see himself lying down next to him.

"Whoa –" Merlin was so perplexed. He stood up feeling like a new man and walked over to his bedroom. He pushed open the door and noticed what little strength he needed. He felt _so _strong. Merlin then walked over to bowl full of water not too far away. He stood stunned as he looked down into the reflection. The boy felt like a bucket of freezing, cold ice had just been tipped all over himself. He saw sapphire blue eyes looking back at him and bright blond hair on his head. His tunic was red now and felt soft on his skin. He was currently Arthur Pendragon, the Crown Prince of Camelot.

**-(I~I)-**

**Back to the Present:**

***-*-*-*** "Merlin!" Merlin heard his name. It sounded like his own voice had shouted it. He rushed out of his bedroom and there, he saw himself standing up in a very stiff position.

"Arthur, its okay, but it seems we have switched bodies." said Merlin, trying to calm down Arthur. It was so weird talking to himself; knowing the prince was in there somewhere.

"It's _not _okay, _Mer_lin and is that really you?" asked Arthur, not bothering to hide the worry in his voice this time; probably because it was Merlin who sounded worried. Not the prince. Arthur was only speaking through his servant.

"Yes, it's me." snapped Merlin.

"How can I be sure?" asked Arthur curiously, Merlin actually wasn't sure how to prove he _was_ Merlin.

He started pacing the room, trying to think of something only Arthur and he would know. He didn't get very far though; only after a few paces, he suddenly caught his foot on the leg of the table and fell forward on to his face.

"Well, actions do speak louder than words. At least I now know you're, _Merlin. _No one is _that _clumsy. I can't believe you are_ still _falling over," (Merlin was now scowling at this point of Arthur's speech) "you are not even in your _own _body, for crying out loud." Arthur said, whilst throwing his arms up in the air melodramatically. "You know, Merlin. Come to think of it…. You are pretty skillful."

"Really? How?" asked Merlin as his eyes opened wide in delight and he sat up eagerly on the floor. He forgot about what Arthur had said a few sentences ago and waited patiently for an answer.

"Skillful at tripping over on flat surfaces." said Arthur cracking up.

"Prat." Merlin muttered quietly to himself as he pulled his own body up so he was standing.

"What was that, Merlin? You do _realise _you just called yourself a _prat_." said Arthur smartly.

"For your information, I was referring to the person _inside _my body and how did you hear that?" Merlin asked; he only quietly spoke the word.

"Well, you, which is now, me, must have very good hearing," said Arthur smiling happily. "I wonder what you have heard, when you were in your own body. Every time I sent you outside my chambers, so I could talk to people. You could have easily been listening through the wall…." Arthur narrowed his eyes significantly on Merlin.

"Anyway, let's now move on to more important matters!" sung Merlin cheerfully; this time Arthur knew Merlin was trying to change the subject. He decided to file it mentally away for later so he could question the boy then. He hated to admit it but Merlin was right. They did need to talk about things that were more important, first.

"Now, Merlin. What the heck happened? Why am I _you?" _Arthur considerably emphasised the word, 'you'.

"Well, you should be glad it's me of all people, Arthur." teased Merlin.

"Merlin…." growled Arthur.

"Okay, okay. Well, let's think back to when we were ourselves." said Merlin, rolling his eyes up to the ceiling to help himself think.

"Yeah, well. I walked into your chambers and when I opened the door, not surprisingly, you were standing right in front of it…," said Arthur and then paused for a few seconds thought. "It hit you and then –" Arthur was cut of by Merlin.

_The spell was cut off and…, _thought Merlin quickly. "… then I dropped the remedy –" said Merlin who finished his thoughts aloud. He just remembered he was using magic and he cut the spell short. _Could that have something to do with it? _In English the spell would say, '_My mind will switch. Heal, heal my skull'. _ He must have stopped the spell after he said the word '_switch_'. Then the fumes from the enchanted, spilt remedy caused his and Arthur's bodies to switch because they were both breathing in the smell.

What confused Merlin most though, was that whenever he had cut a spell short before, nothing had happened. Maybe it was because this was a spell _itself_.

All Merlin could think of doing now, was reversing the effects of the spell with his magic. But did he still have it? Merlin ran up to his bedroom and Arthur followed. Before Arthur could get through though, Merlin shut his door.

"Merlin!" shouted Arthur. "Come back here and tell me what you're doing!" Arthur was pounding on the door but he couldn't make it move. He was too weak in this body.

On the other side, Merlin was leaning with his back against the entrance, just enough force on it so Arthur couldn't get in. After all, he was now strong, as well as smart and had the power to do almost anything. That was if he still had his magic.

Merlin quickly looked around the room for something he could test his magic on. He looked around the room from left to right and his eyes lay on something right next to his bed. A candle. The boy stuck his hand out; fingers spread and said a spell that should make the candle come to life. It was one of the simplest spells so if it didn't work, nothing would.

"Forbærne," he whispered. No effect. Nothing happened to the candle so he tried again. "Forbærne," Still nothing. "Forbærne!" Merlin shouted this time but the candle stayed unlit.

He knew it wasn't going to work. He couldn't feel the magic burning inside of him like he usually could. The only part of him that made him feel safe and unique was gone.

_Gone. _

He couldn't believe it. Merlin only hoped that if he did find a way to return to his body, he would still have the power to use magic.

***-*1*-*** "Merlin! What are you doing in there? Are you okay?" shouted Arthur as he took a step away from the door. Merlin then opened only entrance to his bedroom and Arthur was glad he had unknowingly stepped backward. It was because of the force that the boy had opened the door with.

Arthur then was withdrawn from his thoughts as he stared at Merlin in complete shock. His own self looked absolutely shattered. He could see the despair in his own eyes.

"Merlin, please don't look so sad. If anyone comes in and sees me – you like this…." said Arthur, he was always told to show no emotion. His father said it made him look weak. "Let's just say we really don't want that to happen –" Merlin cut Arthur off.

"– What do I care? Why do I have to be _you?" _Merlin was basically screaming at Arthur. "I just want to be myself again." said Merlin now whispering his words quietly. His voice may now have been soft but his clenched fists; knuckles turning white, showed differently.

"Merlin…. I want to be myself too; we _will _find a way to fix this. I promise," said Arthur laying a hand on Merlin's shoulder. The boy's behaviour seemed really different today. He kept having sudden mood swings all the time. Perhaps, Merlin was now finally feeling comfortable enough to show his true colours. Arthur highly doubted it though. He couldn't imagine a mood swinging Merlin all the time. He was probably just having a bad day and Arthur decided he would be there for Merlin on this day of so called _'toughness'_.

"You're not the only one suffering. I am pretty sure I have now lost my superior sword fighting skills because of this mess." joked Arthur. He noticed his playful banter must have made Merlin feel better because the boy slowly started unclenching his fists.

"And I have lost my –" Merlin was about to say he'd lost his magic but realised he couldn't. Now he would have to make something up, or better yet, change the topic. _Again. _"Um…. I've lost things…." Merlin trailed off slowly.

"Lost things like what?" Arthur asked curiously, narrowing his eyes and taking his hand off Merlin's shoulder.

"Hey, you know, if we can't fix this by tonight … we'll have to trade places for a while." said Merlin desperately trying to evade the subject.

"Yes, I have already considered that." Arthur looked up while he said this. "I think it would be wise, if we were to educate each other on the things we do daily and how we do them. Just so nobody suspects anything."

"Yep, that's a good idea." said Merlin inwardly grinning because of his successful change in subject once again.

"Merlin, one more thing," Arthur sat down in the chair beside him. "What on Earth did I do to your head?" said Arthur loudly; he touched a finger to his temple. Just where he threw the dish. "It is so painful!"

"Yeah, I know. Maybe you will think twice before throwing anything at me again." said Merlin cheekily.

"Slight chance of that happening. Actually…. No chance of that happening. Throwing things at you is definitely worth all this pain." said Arthur with a smile.

"Oh, really now?" Merlin walked over to where Arthur was and hit his head where he knew it hurt most.

"What was that for?" shouted Arthur, now rubbing his head.

"Was throwing that dish at me, _still _definitely worth it?" asked Merlin smiling and ignoring Arthur's last sentence.

"Yep, because when we switch back to our normal bodies. You will have a pounding headache," said Arthur with a grin.

Merlin raised his right hand again and was about to hit Arthur before he suddenly stood up, moved to the side and grabbed Merlin's arm. He then twisted it behind his back.

"I'm not changing my mind, Merlin. You may be stronger right now but you don't know how to use your strength to your advantage. Until then don't try anything or you might really regret it." Arthur spoke fiercely, his grin gone and replaced with a scowl. He continued to hold Merlin's arm – or should he say his arm – behind the boy's back – or should he say his back.

"You wouldn't try anything. If you hurt me, you would only be harming yourself." said Merlin through gritted teeth. His arm in this position was actually quite sore and tender. Even though he was stronger, Merlin still couldn't move. Arthur had him in a certain way so whenever he shifted, his arm would become more painful.

"Don't be too sure." Arthur pierced his nails into Merlin's skin and twisted his arm back further.

Merlin winced painfully. "Oww…. C'mon Arthur, I didn't really mean anything I said." The pain in his arm was now even more painful.

"Oh, I'm sorry Merlin. Did I hurt you?" said Arthur sarcastically. Just as the throbbing pain in Merlin's arm began to become unbearable, Arthur let go. "That was the consequence for hitting a prince. Remember that, Merlin." Arthur really hated being taken advantage of. Merlin knew that, but he still got carried away. This was because of all the new strength he had. Merlin was sure he would never let that, happen again.

"It's always me who manages to get hurt when it is just us two. Have you noticed that?" asked Merlin as he looked down at the nail marks in his skin from when Arthur had released him from his tight grip.

"You certainly are a magnet for trouble, Merlin." said Arthur, now calm once again.

"Arthur," said Merlin, "apart from apologizing, was there any other reason you came to my chambers?" he asked as he rubbed his tender arm.

"Well, it doesn't matter now but after I apologised I was going to ask if you would be my servant again." Arthur didn't feel as confident anymore. He didn't really like asking Merlin to do things. He preferred ordering him.

"Well, okay. You seem to have changed your ways so I would be happy to become your servant again," said Merlin with a smile. "It's just there is a problem…." Merlin gestured toward Arthur and himself.

"That's why it doesn't matter anymore," sighed Arthur. "Oh, and Merlin. You can't tell anyone about this. Even Gaius." he said as he shot Merlin a serious look. It was as if Arthur could tell what Merlin was thinking.

"Well…. Alright." said Merlin agreeing to Arthur's terms. He really still wanted to tell Gaius though. Not only because of how hilarious the situation was but also, this would prevent his uncle from accidentally informing Arthur about his magic.

Arthur noticed Merlin didn't really want to agree. "That's an order, Merlin"

"You don't look like a person to be giving out orders." Merlin said with a smirk on his face.

"Merlin…," growled Arthur angrily. "I want you to give me your word that you won't tell anyone." he really didn't want anybody to know that he might sometimes be cleaning up after his servant.

"Okay. I give you my word." said Merlin. He just hoped his uncle wouldn't say anything.

Arthur gave Merlin a smile and then he took a slow step toward Merlin and punched his shoulder as a friendly gesture. "My god! That actually hurt! You are weaker than a baby!" shouted Arthur, holding his fist. He now understood why Merlin didn't like being punched in the shoulder. If it hurt to punch, then it must be _horrible, _to be punched.

"Welcome to my world." smiled Merlin, raising his arms and gesturing around himself.

**Well that's chapter two. **

**One of the spells wasn't in Latin…. As you would have already noticed…. Why? Because **_**"Forbærne"**_** is the only real Merlin T.V. spell I know and it's my favourite. :)**

**Remember to review! I love your thoughts and tell me if you guessed it right! Did you like the music if you listened to it? Was the story too confusing or was it really simple? Tell me anything about it. Was it good or bad? I am not experienced in grammar stuff so correct it for me if you really want too. Even if it is a one-word review, like: Excellent, boring or awesome. Just review. Every single one counts. :) Reviews also make me finish chapters faster for some reason…. I just get so overly happy that I try finishing the chapter as well and as fast as I can…. Keep that in mind. ;)**

**Oh, and now do you see what I mean by '**_**confusing**_**''? I reckon it would be brilliant if it were made into a real Merlin episode. It's easier to visualise that way. :P**


	4. Chapter 3: A Protective Gaius

**A/N: Okay, I have just updated once again. :)**

**Okay! It's special mention time! I'll do it every now and again…. **

**Kratos-god-slayer-101 - thank you for reviewing, favouriting and alerting**

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**Also thanks to all of those people who didn't alert, favourite, or review but read the story. :)**

**Because I know there are a lot of you who just read the story…. I have 729 hits but only 7 reviews…. How does that work (figure of speech, I do know how it works)? Anyway, moving on….**

**Warnings for this chapter: ****Arthur purposely hurts Merlin (there seems to be a lot of Merlin whumping, eh?)**

**Music: ****Are you remembering to practice reading with music? **

•***-*-*-*,** **First, begin listening to, **_**'Lavanya' **_**by **_**'E.S. Posthumus'. **_

•**When you see this symbol,**__***-*1*-*, listen to,** _**'Midnight Sun' **_**by **_**'The Sounds'. **_

•**When you see this symbol, *****-*2*-*****, listen to, **_**'Manju' **_**by **_**'E.S. Posthumus'.**_

**Yes, I think I love**_** 'E.S. Posthumus'' **_**music…. and the link to my YouTube account with the playlists for this story, are on my profile :)**

**Now please read and enjoy! :) :D :) :P**

**Chapter Three: A Protective Gaius**

***-*-*-* **The two boys' stayed talking in Gaius' chambers for hours. They were oblivious to the sunset that was painted in beautiful, intense colours across the sky and then gradually turned into a dark, starry night.

Slowly, the door began creeping open and an old man stepped into his chambers. "Sire, what are you doing here?" asked Gaius curiously. Arthur then shot a look at Merlin as if to say, _'Remember your promise'._

Merlin received the silent message and then cleared his throat. "I just came to remind Merlin that he needs to clean my armour by tomorrow." He tried to put on his best Arthur imitative voice on.

Arthur's mouth dropped open and his eyebrows rose. Gaius tilted his head to the side and gave him a funny look. Arthur then realised that his jaw was open and closed it quickly. He gave Merlin another look but this time his stare said, _'I never said that ordering me, to do your unfinished chores, was apart of the promise'. _ Merlin just presented Arthur a cheeky grin in return.

Merlin noticed that their soundless discussion had gone on for far too long and it might look suspicious to Gaius so he began to speak again. "Well, I better head off now. Oh, and I also want you to meet me in your – my – chambers at dawn. We're going to need to _discuss _a few things, Arth– Merlin." stuttered Merlin.

Arthur rolled his eyes and slapped his forehead. He couldn't believe it. It hadn't even been five minutes with another person and Merlin managed to stuff up his roll as the prince. He nearly said his _own_ name and to meet him at his_ own _chambers. Then he just had to add emphasis to the word _'discuss'_.

Arthur was just thankful Merlin hadn't done this in front of the king. If he were to find out that Arthur and Merlin had switched bodies, he would try to find a way to fix the problem. That was good but then once they did that, he might punish Merlin – or worse – kill him because he would think magic had something to do with it and some crazy idea that Merlin was a sorcerer trying to kill them all. And, if he were to execute Merlin then Arthur would suffer too because he would lose his only best friend. He would lose some one who saw him as Arthur and not just Prince Arthur.

Arthur then looked into Merlin's eyes, shook his head, and sighed. _What are we going to do with you? _hethought nonchalantly.

"Ahem…. Arthur…." Merlin said through a phony cough as he put a fist to his mouth.

"Ye– yes, my strangely royal idiotness." said Arthur with a small bow. He was so caught up in his thoughts he forgot Gaius was even there.

Merlin then walked toward the door, opened it and let himself out. He slammed the door shut causing the table to wobble. Unfortunately, that was the table supporting some of Gaius' vials. They fell to the ground and shattered, splattering liquid all over the place.

Merlin cringed when he heard the smash. "Damn it." he cursed quietly. He wasn't used to being this strong and had accidentally slammed the door much harder than usual. Merlin quickly got over his slip-up though and began walking to his new, temporary chambers.

**-(I~I)-**

"Well, that was certainly unusual …. Can you go and get your book for me please, Merlin," said Gaius, just after Merlin left the room. "I think I will need it for a concoction; that's only after I clean up the mess that Arthur made, though. Oh, and this mess too..." he motioned to the spill Merlin had made earlier.

"Which book?" asked Arthur nervously.

"I think you know the one." said Gaius casually. He gave Arthur a wink and then began getting cleaning utilities out.

"No, sorry. I don't know." said Arthur, a blank look on his face.

"Hmm…," Gaius thought it was best not to mention anymore. Something was obviously up with Merlin. The boy may be clumsy but he was not stupid. How could he not realise they was talking about his magic book? "Merlin, are you feeling alright?" asked Gaius curiously whilst putting cloths down on the spills.

"Of course I am, why wouldn't I be?" replied Arthur, now feeling very flushed and hot. He hoped Gaius wouldn't find out who he really was.

"Well, your personality is a little different," Gaius was now very suspicious of Merlin. He decided to give the boy a little test, just to see if his uncertainties were true. "It's probably just me," lied Gaius as he stood up to face the boy. "Tell me again, how was that griffin killed? You know, just around the time when Lancelot was in Camelot. This question has been bothering me all day because the answer is just on the tip of my tongue. Please do remind me how the tale goes." said Gaius still trying to act in a casual manner.

"Oh yeah, that. Lancelot killed the griffin with his spear," said Arthur triumphantly, he knew the answer to this question. Then he added, "He did it all on his own."

Suddenly Gaius' relaxed shape stood stiffly. He pointed a finger at Arthur and shouted, "Imposter!"

Panic ascended in Arthur. _How on Earth did Gaius know? Wasn't that what happened? _he thought fearfully. Arthur wasn't going to give in just yet, though.

"No, I am not an imposter. I am your nephew, Merlin." lied Arthur. He stood up straighter. Arthur could feel beads of sweat forming on his forehead.

"What have you done to Merlin?" Gaius shouted as he picked up a sharp, herb-chopping knife next to himself and held it threateningly at Arthur.

"Uhh…. Okay, okay. You got me. Please put that knife down, Gaius," Arthur didn't want to drag this on any longer. There would be no changing the physician's mind now. "Don't worry! It's just me, Arthur."

"What have you done to Merlin?" Gaius repeated. He was very protective over the boy. Gaius held the knife further out from him and closer to Arthur.

"Merlin is safe. In fact, he is probably more comfortable than he will ever be," said Arthur as he stepped backward a pace. He pictured Merlin sleeping, all comfortable on _his_ pleasant, warm, soft – and very squishy – bed. "Some how, Merlin and I switched bodies. I am now in the form of Merlin and Merlin is in the form of me." explained Arthur quickly.

"How can I be sure you're not lying?" asked Gaius suspiciously.

"Well, ask me a question you think only _I, _would know how to answer." said Arthur thoughtfully.

"Okay, then…. What flower did you need to use to save Merlin's life when he was poisoned by Nimueh?" asked Gaius.

"The Mortaeus Flower." replied Arthur simply. Gaius lowered the knife a bit.

"And what type of magical creature did Merlin and Gwaine help save you from on your quest to get the Golden Trident from the Fisher King?"

"Uhh…. A wyvern. Hold on … how did _you_ know Merlin and Gwaine were there?" asked Arthur narrowing his eyes suspiciously on Gaius.

"Merlin told me." replied Gaius straightforwardly as he lay the knife down on the table next to himself.

_Damn it, Merlin. I told you not to tell anyone you were there. _thought Arthur angrily; he made a mental note to lecture Merlin about it later.

***-*1*-*** "I am terribly sorry for the incident earlier, please forgive me, sire," apologised the physician with his head bowed for a moment. He didn't need any more convincing to know that the person he was talking to had the mind of Arthur. Knowing Merlin, anything was possible really…. _What will be next? _thought Gaius. "I did suspect it was you though. I noticed Merlin nearly called you _'Arthur'_." he said.

"That's quite alright, I do understand." said Arthur replying to Gaius' apology. "So, you did notice Merlin's clumsiness, then." he said responding to the second statement the physician made.

"I certainly did, Arthur. I am not deaf you know. Well not yet, anyway…." joked Gaius whilst smiling.

"And you were just questioning me because you wanted to make sure I was Arthur, right?" asked Arthur.

"Well, something like that," Gaius actually wasn't too sure that it was Arthur but he decided to run with it – it made him look extra intelligent anyway. "I can never be too careful. People are always trying to do things to Merlin."

"What do you mean by _'people are always trying to do things to Merlin'_?" quoted Arthur curiously.

"Well, since Merlin is _your _manservant, sire. He always notices when things are wrong. Merlin's observational skills are quite remarkable you see…." said Gaius as Arthur nodded.

"Come to think of it, he _is_ very observative. He saved my life when a knife was thrown at me because he noticed what was happening before anyone else…. He found out about the hidden powers of the snakes on Valiant's shield. He was – er – right about the chalice that Nimueh poisoned and nearly died by saving my life again. The time with the Black Knight…. The time when he told me that I shouldn't have killed the unicorn and that I had to pass – what's his name, er…. – Anhora's test to free Camelot of the curse I set upon it…," said Arthur whilst pacing, "he realised when Cedric was using me so he could get jewel at the heart of – um…. – Cornelius Sigan's tomb. He even found out that the Lady Catrina was in fact a troll and … and when Morgause lied about my mother so she could try to get my father and me to kill each other. If Merlin wasn't there … most of those times…. I would surly be a dead man by now." said Arthur as sat down on a chair next to himself going over everything he'd just said.

"Yes, indeed, I am sorry to say." said Gaius. He knew Merlin had saved the prince's life even more than what he had just said but Arthur probably would never find out – or at least not for now.

_So that's what Merlin meant by saving my life so many times he had lost count. Well maybe he didn't save me all the time but he did warn me_. thought Arthur wanting to kick himself because of how oblivious he had been to the situations he was in.

"Do continue what you were saying before, Gaius." said Arthur looking up at the physician. He wanted to know what Merlin's uncle was getting to.

"Yes, of course," said Gaius thinking back to what he was saying before he was interrupted. "Let me start again. Since Merlin is your servant. He notices when things are wrong – just what we discussed before – and he tries to fix the problems on his own before he consults you, sire. These issues usually are to do with sorcerers trying to kill you, Arthur. Sometimes he succeeds, but not always –"

"– What? You mean _our_ Merlin sometimes stops sorcerers from killing me and I don't even know it?" said Arthur astonished. Gaius gave a slow nod. "He never ceases to amaze me. Clumsy, bumbling Merlin…. He really is something, isn't he Gaius." said Arthur, his eyes wide with bewilderment.

"Indeed he is, sire."

"Could you tell me of a time that I have been saved by him and didn't know it?" asked Arthur interestingly.

"I am sorry, sire but it isn't my place to say."

"But why ever not?" Arthur's eyes were full of dismay but he suddenly saw Gaius' harsh look and thought he better leave the topic alone. "Sorry, Gaius. I got a bit carried away."

"That's quite alright. It is only natural you would want to know…. Now as I was saying before I got interrupted –"

"– Yes, sorry about that –" Arthur cut his sentence short. He realised he just interrupted Gaius, _again_.

"As I was saying…," said Gaius with a slow pause. He was testing to see if Arthur was going to interrupt again and when he didn't, only then did Gaius continue speaking again, "That's better. Anyway, Merlin then tries to protect you by getting involved with the sorcerer. The sorcerer then tries to kill Merlin because he won't let them anywhere near you."

"I don't need protecting!" shouted Arthur as he stood up hastily. Gaius gave him a stern look. "Okay maybe a little…." The physician looked at him in that certain way again. "Alright, a lot of protecting but one thing doesn't make sense. I am a knight and Merlin is just a servant so why is he somehow better at protecting me than I am myself?" asked Arthur curiously.

"Merlin is not just any servant, sire…," Gaius trailed off slowly. He couldn't say Merlin was a sorcerer so he would have to say something else instead. "He is intelligent."

"So you're saying I am not smart then…." stated Arthur.

"Well…," Gaius paused, he knew the prince was a little cunning in some areas but Merlin _was_ the brighter side of the coin as the boy put it, "No … Merlin just thinks outside the box…. He is … rather something special and … unique…." said Gaius thoughtfully.

"Yes, he is pretty special…." said Arthur. He knew that there was something different about his manservant but he just couldn't put his finger on it. It possibly couldn't be intelligence though, could it…?

_There must be something deeper that I don't know about, Merlin…. _thought Arthur.

"Well, I think that is enough talking for one night…. Please make yourself at home, sire. Take my bed if you want. I might also add that it is much more comfortable than Merlin's." said Gaius generously; gesturing to the direction of his bed. He would have to postpone the making of his concoction now that Arthur was here.

"No, I'd rather not; I don't really want to impose. This may sound strange but I actually want to try living like Merlin. I want to see what he goes through everyday." said Arthur abruptly.

"As you wish, my lord." Gaius said with a bow.

"Please, Gaius. I am living like Merlin now, so there is no need to treat me like royalty. I would also appreciate is you wouldn't tell anyone about this." said Arthur in a kind voice.

"As you wish, si– Arthur." Gaius stuttered. He was now completely sure that the prince would one day make a great king. A person who treats everyone as equals is the kind of man who _should be_ ruling the land.

"That's better." smiled Arthur.

**-(I~I)-**

***-*2*-*** "Arthur. Come on sleepy head. Wake up…." said Merlin as he shook Arthur on his shoulders.

_I can't believe that I am still waking up Arthur; he should be waking me up. After all, he's the servant now. I guess some things will never change though. _thought Merlin as he continued trying to shake Arthur awake. Unfortunately, it was still a tad to dark to let the sun do his work.

"Oh, come on!" shouted Merlin now getting impatient. "Wake up you prat!" Merlin raised his hand and slapped Arthur firmly across his cheek.

Arthur's eyes suddenly snapped open. "Who's there?" he shouted. Arthur's vision was really blurry because he had just woken up. All he could see was the shape of a mysterious, muscular figure standing over him. He was being attacked.

Arthur grabbed the figure and rolled them onto his bed so that he was now on top of them. He noticed that it took a lot more strength than usual. Arthur raised his fist and was about to throw a punch when his eyesight finally came to him. It was himself.

"Who the hell are you and what are you doing in my body?" inquired Arthur fiercely.

"Don't you remember, you dollop-head. It's me, Merlin." said Merlin trying to free himself from underneath Arthur. _I never knew my body was actually capable of doing that to Arthur's…. _thought Merlin gleefully.

"Huh? Oh yeah…," all his latest memories began flooding back to him. The switch of bodies with his manservant and the long talk he'd had with Gaius. Arthur stood up to free Merlin. "Well that explains why my bed felt like a rock and I feel extremely weak. I thought nothing had happened and I had had a dream – no, a nightmare – that I switched bodies with you.

"Well, sorry to break it to you but you're not dreaming." said Merlin cheekily.

"I've realised that now," said Arthur grumpily. "Anyway, why are you here?" he asked with a small yawn. He distinctly remembered Merlin telling him to meet him in his chambers at dawn.

"Change of plans. I couldn't sleep so I decided to come down here a bit earlier. I also realised you hadn't come to collect your armour to polish it so I finished for you." said Merlin whilst gesturing to the armour he was already wearing.

"That's a relief." said Arthur; he wasn't really to keen on doing Merlin's uncompleted chore.

"Come on! We don't have all day," shouted Merlin all of a sudden whilst jumping off the bed and grabbing some of his clothes from his closet. He then tossed them at Arthur. "Here, put these on."

Arthur just looked at Merlin. "Well, don't just stand there. Leave the room so I can get changed." Arthur said arrogantly.

"I think I have seen myself change before, Arthur." said Merlin not moving even the slightest. After a minute of complete silence and staring at each other, Arthur at last gave in and took his bed tunic off. Then he put on the tunic Merlin tossed to him.

"You know, Merlin…. Your clothes are _really_ scratchy." said Arthur just after he finished pulling up his trousers. He then sat down on the bed and put on Merlin's old, muddy boots which were by the bed.

"I don't think so. Your clothes are just, _extremely _soft," said Merlin with a grin. "Well, get a move on. You need to show me how to fight or else we're both screwed when I have to train Camelot's knights later today."

"You know, that's actually a really good idea." said Arthur standing up and rushing toward the door. Arthur then opened it quickly; he didn't want to look like a fool in front of all his knights.

"Well, I am the brains _and _the brawn now, you know." Merlin said audaciously.

"Oh really?" said Arthur closing the door which he had just opened. The fighting practice would have to wait. Arthur spun around on his heel to face the boy and Merlin's cheeky grin turned into an expression of fear. As Arthur walked slowly toward him, Merlin gave a huge, significant gulp. This time he had gone a bit too far with his lack of respect.

Merlin began walking backward. In sync with Arthur as he took at step, forward. There was a soft thud as Merlin hit the wall behind him and could not go any further. As soon as Arthur was about a metre from Merlin, he stopped walking.

Merlin was not sure exactly what Arthur would do. He couldn't put him in the stocks or give him chores because Merlin was now the Crown Prince of Camelot. All he knew was that it wasn't going to be pleasant.

Arthur wasn't sure what he was going to do either but he also knew it wasn't going to be enjoyable for Merlin.

After about a minute of staring into each other's eyes, Merlin decided to take a chance to try run away from his assailant. He could either run straight into Arthur or run diagonally, left and try jump over the bed to get away. He chose to run diagonally so he ran to his left and tried to bound over the bed but he knocked his legs on the side of it. This caused him to topple over into a prone position across his bed; with his arms spread wide.

Arthur now knew what he was going to do to Merlin.

He quickly shifted diagonally to his right and ran to where Merlin was lying. Arthur then grabbed Merlin's – or should he say his own – right wrist with one hand and Merlin's shoulder with is other. He swiftly rolled the boy onto his back. Arthur caught one of Merlin's horrified looks and just smiled wickedly back.

He let go of the boy briefly and then grasped Merlin's left wrist. Merlin speedily used his free hand and seized the hand that was holding his left one. Merlin then began tearing off the hand holding him.

_Oh no you don't. _thought Arthur.

He put his free left hand on Merlin's. They were basically a huge tangle of hands. Arthur then moved Merlin's arms, over and above his head so they were pinned there. If Arthur were to describe him, he would say Merlin looked a prisoner with their hands surrendering in the air. But only lying down.

Arthur then rolled Merlin over and onto his stomach. He moved Merlin's arms down and behind the boy's back. This all worked exceptionally well for Arthur because he was standing and Merlin was lying down. That's how he had power over his friend. If Merlin were standing, Arthur would definitely lose what ever they were doing.

"Okay, Merlin…. I will give you one chance. All you have to do is take back what you said before." said Arthur calmly; continuing to hold Merlin's arms behind his back.

"No." said Merlin stubbornly.

"Then suffer the ramifications." spoke Arthur loudly. He held both of Merlin's arms with two different skinny hands and slowly twisted them toward each other.

Merlin yelped. "Twist harder, why don't you?" said Merlin sarcastically. Arthur could hear Merlin's sarcasm so he decided to continue twisting Merlin's arms.

There seemed to be something with Arthur and arm twisting. _Probably a new hobby of his…._ thought Merlin as he nearly laughed aloud at his own joke.

"Only if you take back what you said." said Arthur obstinately. He stopped twisting Merlin's arms but held them in the same uncomfortable position.

"Okay…. I'm not the brawn." said Merlin through gritted teeth; arm twisting actually was more painful than it sounded.

"That's better." said Arthur as he dropped Merlin's arms.

"But I am still the brains." said Merlin daringly as he rolled over onto his back and massaged his tender arms.

Arthur gave him an intimidating glare so Merlin sat up, jumped off his bed and scurried toward the door. He then opened it and sprinted outside of his room.

_Only Merlin. _thought Arthur disbelievingly; as he shook is head.

**Now please review people! I don't care if you are reading this and it has been five years since the chapter was created. I will still receive the review and I will be very happy that people are still reading it. :) So review, no matter how old this story is. :D**


	5. Chapter 4: Malicious Morgana

**A/N: Here is the fourth chapter. **

**Thanks to all of you who reviewed, alerted and favourited. It means a lot. :)**

**Warnings: ****Morgana is a really evil, terrible person in this story *sigh*. **

**Music: ****Are you still remembering to practice? **

•***-*-*-*,** **Begin listening to, **_**'Shadow of the day' **_**by **_**'Linkin Park'. **_

•**When you see this symbol,**__***-*1*-*****, listen to, **_**'Save Tonight' **_**by **_**'Eagle Eye Cherry'.**_

**The link to my YouTube is on my profile page somewhere. :)**

**Now please enjoy! :P **

**Chapter Four: Malicious Morgana**

***-*-*-*** "Come on!" shouted Arthur impatiently. "Can't you do any better?"

"I'm really trying you know…. I … don't see … how you can … still be better … than me." said Merlin panting.

"I guess it shows that having muscles doesn't determine how good you really are as long as you know how to fight."

It was a cloudless, sunny day. Arthur and Merlin had both being practicing sword fighting in a clearing for hours now. They used to be fighting in the castle's walls but had to move into the woods because if anyone saw the Crown Prince of Camelot losing a sword fight to his servant, it would definitely arouse suspicion.

"Can we please stop now?" whined Merlin.

"Not until you learn how to fight properly."

Why did he have to suggest that he and Arthur should practice fighting? It would have been so much easier just to make Arthur look ridiculous in front of his knights. And, why was he still terrible at using a sword? Merlin thought that since he was in Arthur's body, he could finally win a fight but he was awfully mistaken.

Suddenly Merlin went crashing to the grassy ground. He was so involved in his thoughts that he had let Arthur hit him with his sword, over his head, _again_.

Arthur sighed. "Come on, get up." he offered his hand to Merlin. That had been at least the _fiftieth_ time he had conquered Merlin, _today_. Merlin took his hand and Arthur heaved him up.

Then unexpectedly, a cold voice came from behind one of the trees in the woods. "I never thought I would see this happening. I think you're losing your touch, Arthur." a cloaked, beautiful woman with green eyes stepped out, from behind an old oak tree. The lady was wearing a dark, crimson dress. She could easily pass as the devil herself.

"Morgana, what are _you _doing here?" groaned Arthur.

"That is no way to speak to the king's ward, Merlin." said Morgana harshly whilst walking up toward the two boys'.

"Oh right…," Arthur had almost forgotten he was in the body of Merlin. "I am sorry, my lady." Arthur gave a small bow.

Morgana smiled to herself as Merlin cowered because of her words to him. She really didn't expect that from the boy but she wasn't all too sure what to expect either. That was why her sister was asking her to keep watch of Merlin.

She noticed Arthur and Merlin weren't up and around Camelot so she went looking for them elsewhere and soon enough she stumbled upon them. She could now see why they were all the way out here. It was obvious Arthur was training with Merlin so he wouldn't embarrass himself in front of the knights later today. But for some reason Arthur was fighting really badly. She had only been behind that tree for a few minutes and she could already see how terrible he was.

"So what _are_ you doing here, Morgana?" asked Merlin, so Arthur could get his answer and he could find out too.

"Well, I couldn't sleep so I decided to go for a walk," Merlin was sure that that was not the full truth and Morgana was doing something else, "and guess what I found? A mere servant beating the Crown Prince of Camelot at sword fighting." said Morgana answering her own rhetorical question.

"Merlin is not just a 'mere servant'. He is a good, kind-hearted, wonderful, intelligent person and he is my best friend." said Merlin proudly pointing out all of his strong qualities.

Arthur rolled his eyes and slapped his forehead. Merlin knew he was going to regret what he said later; at least once Arthur was through with him. But it was definitely worth it.

"Aww, Prince Prat has a _'widdle fwend'_. Isn't that nice?" said Morgana sarcastically.

"How long have you been behind that tree, anyway?" asked Merlin ignoring Morgana's last statement.

"Long enough to see that you are worse at fighting than a pecking chicken." said Morgana with a small harsh laugh.

Merlin was very irritated now. He knew that Morgana was referring to Arthur but he still didn't like being compared to a chicken.

"Firstly, I was going extremely easy on Merlin and secondly, I have been feeling under the weather recently." argued Merlin with lies, now trying to cover for Arthur.

"Yes, he was going easy on me." said Arthur trying to make Merlin's argument stronger.

"No one asked you to speak, you clumsy fool." snapped Morgana fiercely.

Arthur and Merlin were both taken aback.

"No one calls _my_ servant a _clumsy fool_, Morgana." said Merlin furiously.

"Alright, there is no need to get angry at me. I am only saying how much of an idiotic, horrible servant, Merlin is."

Suddenly, Merlin leapt a Morgana but before he could get there, Arthur shoved him away.

"Going to hit a girl, were you, Arthur? You should learn to control yourself better." mocked Morgana. "Didn't your mother ever tell you that? Oh right, you don't have one."

At this, Arthur tried to lunge at Morgana but Merlin held him back. Then for some strange reason, Arthur's eyes felt rather warm and his body felt like tingly all over. All of a sudden, the sky turned from bright blue to dark grey and a bolt of lightning then came down, not too far from where they were standing.

Arthur had no idea where it had come from but Merlin guessed it was because Arthur had gotten angry and his magic had reacted inside of him. This relaxed Merlin a bit because he now knew his magic was not lost but it also scared him because Morgana may have noticed and Arthur could discover his magic.

After all, Arthur became much more emotional than Merlin and one wrong emotional thought from Arthur could lead to disasters. Thankfully Merlin never got too upset or angry, but that wouldn't help him now because he wasn't in his own body.

He was afraid of Morgana finding out, though because she could find a way to use it against Arthur – thinking it was him.

"Get away from me, you filthy servant…. And you too, need to learn to control yourself better." said Morgana looking Merlin up and down. She was talked about the lightning and attacking all in one sentence.

_I hope she was only talking about Arthur throwing himself at her and not my magic reacting inside of Arthur. _thought Merlin fearfully.

Morgana was now certain that Merlin was a sorcerer. She saw his eyes flash gold and she saw that bolt of lightening. As a sorceress herself, she knew the repercussions of getting emotional. The magic would react inside of her and cause random, unexplainable things to happen. It seemed Merlin had the same problem but not as significantly as herself because this was the first time she'd actually noticed this happening to the boy.

"I'm sorry, _Morgana_," Merlin spat her name out as if it were poison. "but we really need to get back now."

Morgana had always really bugged Merlin ever since they found her in the forest. He had hoped that she would become her old self again but that little bit of faith he had in her was all but gone now. She truly _was_ an evil witch. Just like the dragon had always said.

Merlin turned around and began walking toward Camelot. "My lady." said Arthur gruffly as he gave an extremely small bow. He then began running after Merlin.

"I can't believe her!" exclaimed Arthur just as he caught up to Merlin.

"Yeah, I know." said Merlin in a monotone.

"She seems so different these days, doesn't she?" asked Arthur struggling to keep up with Merlin's fast pace.

"Yeah…." said Merlin blandly again.

"Slow down, will you?" asked Arthur arrogantly but Merlin still continued walking at his ridiculously fast rate.

Arthur quickly ran in front of Merlin causing him to stop walking. He then put his hand on the boy's shoulder. "Don't let her get to you. You're nothing like what she said. You are a good person, Merlin."

Merlin looked into Arthur's deep blue eyes and let out a grin, "I'd never thought I'd hear the day when you say that." he said merrily.

"_Mer_lin," Arthur paused, "Shut up." he said it in a way so that each words last letter was in a higher pitch.

"Yes, Arthur." said the boy enthusiastically as he continued to grin.

"Is that the way she always treats you?" asked Arthur ignoring what he'd just said to Merlin.

"Basically ever since the search party found her in the forest."

"Oh, I'm sorry," said Arthur. He was now getting used to apologising to Merlin. Even though it had only been a day and a bit, he had already gotten much closer to Merlin. "Anyway, I think that today, should just be a day, where you just observe the knights fighting skills. All you'll really have to do is give pointers. You are very good at observing so you should be able to do that just fine."

"What's this I hear? Another compliment? What's got into you today, Arthur? But don't stop, I could easily get used to this."

"Can't you just take the compliment and leave it. I think this is why I don't ever do it." said Arthur with a sigh.

"Whatever. Well, I think I better go train the knights' now." Merlin gritted his teeth together and put on a worried look. In the next second, Merlin's usual expression was back on his face. "While I am doing that you can go and muck out the stables. Remember how you gave me a week of that?" he teased.

"Merlin…," growled Arthur. He lunged at the boy but before he made it, Merlin started running away. "Hey! Come back here!" shouted Arthur and he started running playfully after Merlin. He was glad the boy's usual quirky self was back.

**-(|~|)-**

"Have fun in the stables?" asked Merlin cheerfully as he skipped across the courtyard toward a manure-covered Arthur. He had just finished observing the knights.

"Merlin! Don't skip around! What will the people think?" said Arthur through gritted teeth.

"You have got to learn that it doesn't matter what people think – unless it's me of course – and what only makes you happy is important, no matter how stupid it is." said Merlin only stopping skipping just before he reached Arthur.

"Well, what makes me happy, are people thinking that I am not a weird, skipping prince," said Arthur angrily. "I don't care if you like to skip around and pick daisies when you're in your body but just don't do it in mine!"

"Alright, alright. If you're so uptight about it then I'll _stop_." said Merlin as he threw his arms up in the air.

"Good," said Arthur now calm again. "Merlin, do I still have to muck the stables out tomorrow?" asked Arthur.

"Yep, it's either that or the stocks." said Merlin cheekily.

"Hang on. Why am I asking you? I am the prince here; not you."

"I'm glad you realised." said Merlin sarcastically. "You know, it really has been a lot of fun ordering you around even when you don't have to do it."

"Merlin…." growled Arthur.

"I'm sorry…," Merlin did not really want to get into another row with Arthur. Then, just for the fun of it, he added, "dollop-head."

"Idiot."

"Clot-pole."

"Clumsy."

"Prat."

"Merlin!" shouted Arthur; Merlin just gave him a cheeky grin.

Then Arthur picked some dung off his tunic and held it threateningly at Merlin. In less than a second, Merlin had already sprinted across the courtyard and into the castle. Arthur ran after him still holding the horse manure; ready to strike at any moment.

**-(|~|)-**

Tonight, Merlin found it really difficult to sleep. He lay restless in Arthur's chambers, on his bed for what seemed like hours before he finally decided that he should go and get a sleeping draught from Gaius.

Merlin got out of his bed and walked to Arthur's closet. He quickly changed into a Pendragon red tunic and black trousers. Then he grabbed a black cloak that was hanging over a chair and put it on too. Merlin then picked up Arthur's boots and quickly slid them on.

He then opened the door of Arthur's chambers and walked out into the dark, silent corridor. He then quietly, walked to the end of the corridor and turned into the next one. He noticed something very peculiar as he did so. Either it was his imagination or another person had just turned into the next passageway. No one was actually allowed to roam the kingdom at night so he decided to go see who dared to break the law.

He quickly but silently ran after them. Just before he reached the next corridor, he put his head around the corner to try to identify who it was. Unfortunately, they were wearing a blood-red, scarlet cloak with their hood up and all he could see was a figure walking. What he did know though, was that the person was probably a woman because of their feminine stride.

Every time the woman turned a corner, Merlin would quietly run up to that, corner and just see her turning again. He kept this up, right until the mystery woman left the castle walls.

As she entered the forest, Merlin made sure that he was extra cautious to not trip over any tree roots. He couldn't afford being found out now because he was more vulnerable than ever before. He had no defensive skills whatsoever.

For about an hour, he stumbled around after the cloaked lady and hiding behind a large, tree trunk, every time the woman looked behind herself.

***-*1*-*** At last the woman stopped in a clearing to face another cloaked woman with light-blonde, wavy hair.

_Morgause, _thought Merlin as he hid behind an old, oak tree.

"What took you so long, sister?" asked Morgause curiously.

_And that cloaked woman was Morgana. _

"I thought I was being followed, it was probably just a stray deer though."

"Are you sure? You can always come back another night if you think you were followed." offered Morgause kindly.

"No, no it's alright, sister." said Morgana reassuringly.

"Good, now please give me your report on the boy, Merlin." said Morgause gesturing her hand upward as if to inviting Morgana to speak.

"I have good news – no, it's more like brilliant news." said Morgana excitedly, "Our suspicions were real. Prince Arthur's manservant, Merlin _is _a sorcerer."

_Oh no! Morgana did notice. _thought Merlin fearfully.

"Excellent!" exclaimed Morgause. "This will work perfectly with my plan." said Morgause as her eyes sparkled with exhilaration.

"What is your plan, sister?" asked Morgana eagerly.

"Well, before I get into that, I need to tell you that he _is _dangerous. I did some research and it is prophesised that one day, the lands of Albion will be united and Arthur will become the Once and Future King. A powerful warlock named Emrys is supposed to help Arthur achieve this. I believe Merlin _is_ this Emrys,"

_This keeps on getting worse. _thought Merlin horror-struck because Morgause and Morgana knew of his destiny. It would make it harder to fulfill now that they were enlightened with this knowledge.

"That's why we struggle to kill him; he is destined to become one of the most powerful warlocks of all time. Unlike a sorcerer, a warlock's magic is apart of them; it is not something they learn; this instantly makes them more powerful."

"It all makes sense now." said Morgana dreamily. She was obviously thinking about something whilst listening to Morgause's speech.

"We can't let this to happen though. We need you to become queen, sister but it will only work if we can get rid of Merlin." Morgause paused, "Now that brings me to my plan. If we can't kill him, then we will have to get someone else to. Sometime soon, I want you to reveal his magic to Arthur." said Morgause.

"But how? Arthur wouldn't believe me because he knows I hate Merlin. He would think I was just trying to get him into trouble. We would need evidence." Morgana quarreled.

"And evidence we will give him." said Morgause with a smirk.

"I'm listening."

"Sometime this week I want you to get Arthur and Merlin alone with yourself. All you have to do is put a simple spell on Merlin so that his magic goes haywire. Then –" Morgana cut Morgause off.

"– Arthur will have Merlin executed because of sorcery." said Morgana finishing off Morgause's sentence. Her eyes were dazzling with excitement.

"Exactly." said Morgause smiling.

"I can do it tomorrow. I will ask Arthur if he can come horse riding with me and I'll make sure he brings Merlin along." said Morgana cunningly.

"But what if he refuses?" asked Morgause curiously.

"Oh, he won't refuse. No one can resist such a sweet, innocent Morgana." said Morgana smiling evilly.

"Well, if you're sure." said Morgause putting her faith in Morgana.

"Positive." said Morgana.

Morgause then put her face close to Morgana's and whispered something in her ear.

"So that's all I have to say and Merlin will not be able to control his magic briefly?"

"That is all. Just make sure Arthur sees."

Merlin decided that he should now head back because Morgana would be coming his way any minute. He turned around and slowly started walking away until he accidentally stood on a twig.

_Crack._

"Who's there?" asked Morgause loudly.

Merlin froze where he was. He had been found out.

"I asked who's there?" repeated Morgause.

No reply.

"It is probably just that stray deer again, sister." said Morgana reassuringly.

"What if it's not?" said Morgause raising her eyebrows.

"Do you really think anyone would have followed me?" Morgause didn't look convinced. "I am heading back now, anyway. I will look at it then."

"If you are sure, sister."

"I always am."

"Go, quickly. The intruder may have already left." Morgause motioned to the area where Merlin was hiding.

At this, Merlin bolted. It didn't matter if they heard him. He just had to get out of there.

Merlin ran all the way to the castle; not stopping once. It was times like these that being in Arthur's body was useful. He had a lot more stamina than Merlin.

He ran through the courtyard and into the corridors. Once he had gotten into Arthur's chambers, he threw off his cloak and chucked off his tunic and trousers. He also pulled off his boots and then got into Arthur's bed clothing. He then hopped into bed, and all in record time. No one would know he had even left.

He lay on Arthur's bed thinking about what Morgana was going to do tomorrow. He had to try to prevent this event from occurring or it could be disastrous. Merlin _would_ refuse Morgana's offer to go horse riding.

The boy then slowly started drifting off into a deep sleep.

**Well, that was chapter four!**

**Remember to review! :)**


	6. Chapter 5: A Traumatised Arthur

**A/N: Here's chapter five! I certainly enjoyed writing it because there is a big moment for Arthur and Merlin in it! :D**

**Warnings: Nothing major. Arthur just gets hurt emotionally by, Merlin.**

**Music: **

•***-*-*-*,** **First, listen to, **_**'Fireflies' **_**by **_**'Owl City' **_**(I love that song).**

•***-*1*-*, listen to, **_**'Watercolour' **_**by **_**'Pendulum'.**_

•***-*2*-*,listen to, **_**'Undisclosed Desires'**_** by **_**'Muse'**_** (the lyrics don't go with the story too well or maybe they do, meh, the song sounds good :D).**

**You can find them on my YouTube channel. Go to my profile and search for the link.**

**Now please take pleasure in reading chapter five!**

**Chapter Five: A Traumatised Arthur**

*-*-*-*_Knock, knock. _A few seconds pause. _Knock, knock._

_What on Earth? _thought Merlin. He slowly opened his eyes and sat up on his warm, soft bed.

_Knock, knock. _

"Oh, right." he muttered to himself. Merlin wasn't used to having visitors early in the morning. Someone must be knocking on the door.

_Knock, knock. _

Who ever this was, were certainly determined to see him.

_Knock, knock._

"I'm coming!" shouted Merlin and he ran to the door.

When he opened it, there was a beautiful woman, with luscious red lips and long wavy raven-hair standing there. Green eyes were looking up into his sapphire ones. She was wearing a silky, emerald green, long-sleeved dress.

"Morgana." he said glumly. It was amazing how someone _so_ beautiful could be _so_ malicious.

"You don't seem happy to see me. Anyway, are you going to let me in, or not?" said Morgana arrogantly.

"Step right this way." said Merlin dully as he tried very hard not to sigh. He moved away from the door and motioned to the centre of his new bedroom.

_The arrogant-ness must run in the family. _thought Merlin trying to suppress a laugh.

"Thank you, Arthur," said Morgana as she forced a small smile. "Well, I came here to apologise about my poor behaviour yesterday. I shouldn't have said all those awful things to you and Merlin. I guess, I was just bad-tempered because I have only had little sleep recently," she spoke softly but Merlin and her both knew that she wasn't just provoking them because of her lack of sleep. Morgana aggravated them at her own will. "It was wrong to take out my anger on you two." she continued her apology. "I hope you can forgive me." The witch looked at Merlin with puppy-dog eyes.

_I cannot forgive you, Morgana. I'm sorry but I just can't forgive you. _thought Merlin.

"I forgive you." said Merlin gently.

_Curse her puppy-dog eyes and my gentle soul. _he thought angrily.

"Well, to make it up to you, I was wondering if you would like to go for a horse ride with me. We can stop for lunch by the lake, as well. You can also bring Merlin if you would like. I need to apologise to him, anyway."

_Say no, she is only doing this so she can reveal your magic to Arthur. _he thought knowingly.

"No, I'm sorry. I need to … uh…. Train the knights today." said Merlin improvising as he smiled inwardly because he'd had enough courage to stand up to Morgana for once.

"But you always train the knights." whined Morgana whilst throwing her hands out in front of herself angrily. She really was very moody. One minute she was smiling happily and the next she might be threatening to kill you.

"I'm sorry, Morgana." said Merlin trying to sound sympathetic for her.

Morgana could see this wasn't working so she decided to try a new approach to get Arthur and Merlin to go horse riding with her.

"You know, I came up here and was expecting you to say 'yes' like the brother I don't have. I have already packed the picnic baskets full of food and readied the horses. And all you do, is say 'no'." fake tears swelled up in Morgana's eyes. "That really hurt, Arthur. Now all the food will go to waste and I will be alone all day thinking of what a good time we could have had together."

"Wh– … why don't you get Gwen to go with you?" asked Merlin. He couldn't believe he was actually starting to feel really bad about saying 'no'. He was acting as Arthur for God's sake.

"It wouldn't be the same." said Morgana sadly and she forced a tear to shed.

Even though Merlin knew she was putting it on, he still felt guilty. And perhaps this was the way his magic was _meant _to be revealed. Arthur would have to find out sooner or later – obviously he couldn't just tell him when they first met because Arthur only thought and saw magic as _evil_ back then – and he hardly knew Merlin; he would've just thought Merlin was just another evil sorcerer.

But now Arthur _should_ be able to trust Merlin, except that tiny piece of doubt that Arthur would get the wrong idea held him back every time. Although, if he left it too _late_, Arthur could get very angry that the servant hadn't trusted him and then their destiny would fail altogether.

Also, Morgana would be sure to just use the spell another time if it didn't happen today. And what's worse is that she could do it when he and Arthur were in court or at a council meeting where everyone – including the king – would see. That would mean there would be no chance in getting out of it. But this way, he might be able to convince Arthur not all magic was evil – especially since it would be a very low chance Arthur would kill his own body just because Merlin's inside of it. But then again, Arthur may not be thinking in his right mind when he finds out. This could go many ways but it _was_ worth it overall. The repercussions would surely be worse if he just left Arthur unknown to his magic – especially with Morgause and Morgana now knowing of his powers and destiny.

"Well … alright then." said Merlin giving in to Morgana's phoney crying.

"Oh, Arthur!" said Morgana melodramatically. She hurled herself at Merlin and put her arms around him.

He also put his arms around her; even though he didn't want to. It would be suspicious if he didn't.

Morgana let go of Merlin and he noticed she had no more tears in her eyes. This definitely proved that she was faking it.

"Well, I think I have to go now…," said Morgana abruptly so that Merlin couldn't change his mind in case he wanted to. "Meet me in the courtyard an hour before lunch with, Merlin." she ordered briskly as she walked to the door. Before the witch opened it, she glimpsed at Merlin and gave a quick, wicked smile. She then pulled it ajar – just enough so that she could squeeze through and then walked out while closing it behind herself.

Merlin couldn't believe that he had just been manipulated by that whole act. It turned out that listening to Morgause's conversation with Morgana, in the forest was completely and utterly pointless.

_What did you just get yourself into, Merlin? _said a voice in his the back of his head.

_I don't want to know. _he said replying to the voice feeling like an idiot.

**-(|~|)-**

_Knock, knock._

_Again? _Merlin thought. It had only been less than a minute since Morgana had left Arthur's chambers and someone else had already knocked on the door.

_Knock, knock._

"Come in." said Merlin with a sigh.

"What's wrong with you, today?" It was Arthur who had knocked on the door this time.

"Morgana…." sighed Merlin.

"You're still not upset about what she said yesterday, are you?" asked Arthur.

"No, but she just manipulated me into going horse riding with her today." said Merlin glumly.

Arthur cracked up laughing. "You are even more than a girl than I thought you were. Are you going to chat and pick daisies together?"

"You shouldn't be so happy. You are going to be picking daisies too." _May as well savour these light-hearted moments with Arthur, _he then thought.

Arthur stopped laughing. "What!" he shouted.

"You heard me." said Merlin. His frown turned into a grin; Arthur always seemed to lighten up moments when he was upset.

"Damn it, Merlin." growled Arthur angrily.

"I couldn't let you miss out on all the fun, you know," said Merlin sarcastically as he let out a small chuckle. "Meet me in the courtyard an hour before lunch."

**-(|~|)-**

"Where's Merlin?" asked Morgana as Merlin arrived to where she had told him to meet her.

"He's coming." said Merlin in reply.

"That's good." she forced a smile.

_What if Merlin doesn't come? _thought Morgana. _I can't just fail my sister like that…. _

Five minutes passed and then Merlin saw Arthur in the distance. "Here he comes now…." Merlin gestured to Arthur running toward them.

"Sorry … that … I'm late." said Arthur putting on heavy panting.

"Never mind." said Morgana sharply; Merlin's lateness had really frustrated her. He had her thinking that he wasn't going to make it.

***-*1*-*** Merlin and Arthur both planned that Arthur would be late. That way, it wouldn't arouse suspicion because Merlin was _never _on time. Merlin also knew that it would anger her and he just couldn't help himself.

Morgana mounted onto her white-coloured mare, whilst Merlin and Arthur both climbed onto their chestnut-coloured stallions'.

Merlin rode in between Morgana and Arthur's horses and as soon as they left the castle walls, they all galloped at top speed, to the lake. They were going so fast that everything around them was just a great big blur of colours. It had been about an hour before anyone spoke.

"Well, we're here now." said Morgana as she quickly pulled her horse into a slow trot. "I'll start setting up the picnic." she jerked her mare to a halt and slowly dismounted.

"Uh…. Okay." stammered Merlin. He was feeling really panicky because he knew it wouldn't be long before she used a spell on Arthur, which would make _his_ magic uncontrollable.

Merlin knew his magic was soon to be revealed so he decided that he might as well make it difficult for Morgana to fulfill her plan.

He could start by separating himself from Arthur because the witch would need him there, so that he could witness the affects of his magic going haywire. Little did she know though, was that his body wouldn't be executed because Arthur was inside of there. However, he might be killed if they ever did return to their own bodies. But, hopefully that would be enough time for Arthur to realise that not all magic is evil and only the user of magic can be bad.

Merlin actually wasn't worried about being eradicated if they ever got back to their own bodies. No, he was more afraid of losing his tight, brotherly bond with Arthur.

"Well, I think I will go for a little walk. I will be back once you set up everything." said Merlin cunningly. He hated to leave Arthur alone with the witch but he was pretty sure Arthur wouldn't get hurt because he was posing as a powerful warlock. He chose to switch bodies with the right guy, that's for sure – even if he didn't exactly make the decision.

"No, no. Stay here; I will not be too long." said Morgana sounding a little aggravated.

"I won't be too long, either." reasoned Merlin.

Morgana scowled. "Very well." It seemed her plan would be delayed for a while.

Merlin began walking away from Morgana. He looked up at the clear, blue, sunny sky and started thinking about what he was going to do once his magic was revealed. He could either go with the flow of things, pretending he was still Arthur and that he was shocked about his, clumsy manservant being a sorcerer and work out a plan from there…. On the other hand, he could tell Morgana that they had switched bodies and her plan was unsuccessful because he would not execute his own body.

Both options were both deeply satisfying except the second one might not be that rewarding in the future. Morgana could tell her half-sister that both boys were practically defenceless because Merlin couldn't sword fight well in Arthur's body and Arthur couldn't use magic at all in Merlin's body. He decided to go with option one and Merlin would work the rest out when the time came.

He started walking back toward where Morgana had the picnic now, set up. He then thought that it was perhaps his destiny and – or – the best way for Arthur to find out about his magic in this manner because Merlin would be safe from harm. Arthur couldn't kill him because he was in Merlin's body so Morgana actually might be doing him a favour. However, that's only if Arthur accepts that Merlin is a sorcerer.

Merlin would rather die than to lose his friendship with Arthur, even though he knew that the prince was not a true friend if he did deny him. His life just wouldn't be the same without the other. Merlin hoped that Arthur felt the same way about him.

He also understood that it was now or never to find out if Arthur would accept him for whom he was. If he told him any sooner he wouldn't have trusted Merlin enough to keep his secret. If he told him too late then Arthur might believe that _Merlin_ didn't trust him very much. However, the real reason Merlin didn't want to tell Arthur about his magic was that he didn't want his best friend to have to choose between him and his father.

The only thing Merlin wanted to know was if Arthur would accept that Merlin had magic. However, he knew only time would respond to his unanswered question.

"Oh, good. You're back," said Morgana with a small smile. Her scheme was soon to be accomplished. "Merlin, come back over here. I will finish up tying the horses."

Arthur seemed suspicious of why Morgana was offering to help him by tying up the horses but he did as he was told and walked over to where Merlin was. Morgana sauntered up to the horses.

Merlin knew that it was now, just a matter of time before his magic was going to be revealed. Morgana would obviously say the spell where Arthur and Merlin couldn't hear her.

"Fac Merlin's magicae amittere tempero." chanted Morgana quietly.

"Forgive me." whispered Merlin softly to Arthur.

"Potesta tempero est amissa pro quidam tempore." Morgana finished the enchantment and turned around from the horses so that she could watch her spell take affect.

Before Arthur had time to ask why Merlin had asked him to forgive him, he felt a warm feeling beginning to rise up in him. It started in his toes; then it moved up through his feet and up his long legs. The warmth then spread up through his torso and seeped down his through his arms. Now, the soothing heat was edging through his hands. Arthur expected that the odd sensation would stop at his fingers but he was wrong…. Instead of stopping, he felt it move straight through his fingertips and land on the empty picnic basket. He couldn't see the warmth move there but somehow he just knew. It felt like he was actually holding the basket in his hands. His eyes also felt like they were warm. They had a fiery feel to them.

Then something very strange happened. The empty picnic basket levitated.

_Magic. _thought Arthur. _But who was using it? _It couldn't be Merlin because he was in _his own_ body and it couldn't be Morgana because she was still tying up the horses. So, it must be…. _Himself._

_But how? _thought Arthur curiously. _I am no sorcerer. _

Then something else odd happened. Just like yesterday, the sky turned dark and the sun disappeared. Then a bolt of lightning came down from the heavens above. It was so near to him, Arthur could feel the ground shaking beneath his boots.

_What is happening? _he thought. Arthur looked at Merlin for an answer but he was just staring at the ground as if nothing had happened. How could Merlin not be mystified about what had just occurred, though?

Before he could think for any longer, Arthur could feel something else abnormal going on. How he knew, he had no idea. Arthur turned around to face the lake.

There he saw what looked like a miniature whirlpool in the water. It slowly became larger and larger. It also, felt really windy too; his vision was getting worse and worse. The dust and sand around the lake had been picked up in the gusty wind.

***-*2*-*** _What is happening? _thought Arthur perplexed once again.

Just when it looked like the spinning aqua had became almost too large to be contained in the lake, it disappeared as quickly as it came. The wind also vanished and turned into a cool, gentle breeze.

The bright sun came back out and the old basket dropped to the grassy ground. Arthur then felt the warmth slowly die down inside of himself as well.

"What was that?" asked Arthur, directing his question at Merlin but the boy just continued looking at the ground.

Then it hit him. _It couldn't be? Merlin … a … sorcerer? _thought sounded _so _wrong, putting '_Merlin'_ and '_sorcerer'_ in the same sentence.

_But how? _he asked himself again. _Merlin, is in my body._

Then another thought occurred to Arthur. _What if, I just used the magic, Merlin once possessed in his own body? _This freaked Arthur out.

_How could Merlin be evil? There isn't a single evil bone is his body. He is just my clumsy, bumbling servant, right? _he thought.

_But what if not all sorcerers are evil? _said a voice in his head.

_But I have only ever seen evil sorcerers. _said Arthur replying to his inner voice.

_So, what if you haven't seen any good ones. It doesn't mean that they're not out there – _Before his inner voice could finish, Arthur heard a sharp harsh, voice.

"Merlin, you're a sorcerer? I thought you were better than that." said Morgana harshly.

_No, no. This is all wrong. Merlin is the sorcerer! Not me. _thought Arthur. He just couldn't bring himself to say it aloud.

"Don't even think about denying it, Merlin. Arthur and I both saw your eyes burned gold, didn't we?" said Morgana severely as she looked over at Merlin to back her up.

So, that was why Arthur's eyes felt like they had a fiery feel to them. That must be what it feels like to use magic.

_Magic has warm and strangely pleasant sensations. _thought Arthur peacefully._ No, magic is not pleasant; it is bad and corrupting. Evil. _Arthur tried to shake off his earlier thoughts.

"Uh … yes, Merlin _is _a sorcerer." said Merlin agreeing with Morgana for once. He then decided to add a little more enthusiasm. "Merlin! How could– I trusted you! For the love of Camelot, why?"

Arthur then looked at Merlin who was already gazing at him. 'Why?' mouthed Arthur sadly. 'Why did you do this to me?'

Merlin looked away and then spoke, "Morgana, can you go get some rope? I need to tie Merlin up so we can bring him back to Camelot, without him escaping." He put on Arthur's growl voice – the one where the prince spoke through clenched teeth.

_So this was Merlin's plan. To switch bodies with the Crown Prince of Camelot. For him to befriend Merlin. To make him feel like a fool for ever trusting a mere servant. To put him on the chopping block or pyre and take over Camelot. _thought Arthur with mixed emotions of anger, fear and sorrow.

_After everything, we've been through together…. How could I have been so foolish? But how could a person with a smile like Merlin's be evil? _Arthur was so confused. Nothing made sense anymore except that Merlin _had_ betrayed him. He had betrayed them all: Morgana, Guinevere and _even _Gaius.

Arthur then had a thought that Merlin may have caused them to switch bodies. His father would have been right about Merlin being a sorcerer trying to kill them all. How could he have been so blind? Merlin had been pointed out before, for the crime of being a sorcerer and he still didn't see it. Merlin had even admitted it to the whole court _himself!_

And then another thing also didn't add up. Why did Merlin always help him when it came to danger? He was always there for him. When he had to defeat the dangerous dragon, Merlin came and he couldn't even wield a sword. Why was he so loyal, or was it all an act to make, Arthur trust him?

_Now Arthur, do you really think Merlin's friendship was all just an act? _said his inner voice again.

_I don't know…. _he thought back.

_Why don't you ask him then?_

Arthur tuned back into reality. He was sitting on the grass by the lake and he knew Merlin was squatting behind him because he could feel his breath, on his neck. He looked behind himself and Morgana was readying the horses about seven metres away. Arthur could feel a rough tope digging into his wrists. Merlin was binding his arms together.

"Why?" asked Arthur to Merlin.

"I will explain more when we get back to Camelot. For now just please believe me when I say this and keep pretending you're me. What ever you do, don't let Morgana find out that you're Arthur." whispered Merlin seriously.

"How am I supposed to trust you, when you lied to me about something as big as this? Didn't you trust me enough to keep your secret or was this all apart of your evil scheme to rule, Camelot?" asked Arthur angrily.

"Shh…. Keep your voice down." hushed Merlin. "Firstly, I didn't lie to you because you never asked me and secondly, I did trust you but I didn't want you to have to choose between your father and me. I also didn't want to lose your friendship; it means the world for me." whispered Merlin calmly as he finished tying Arthur's wrists together. He was glad because Arthur was taking the truth about him better than he thought he would. He would have thought Arthur would be running through the forest by now so he was away from him and Morgana.

The witch then finally completed readying the horses and started walking toward the boys'.

Merlin noticed this so he quickly whispered a few more words to Arthur. "Just don't tell Morgana you are actually, Arthur. Believe me. I would never hurt you. I would die before I did that." Merlin patted Arthur on the shoulder with out Morgana noticing, and stood up from where he had been crouching.

"You need to blindfold, Merlin." ordered Morgana loudly. "Sorcerers can't use their magic without their eyesight."

"Or their words." Merlin added. He had to convince Morgana he was on her side. Well, just for now he had to persuade her.

"Gag him as well then." she said cruelly.

Merlin kneeled down in front of Arthur. "I promise that it will all be okay. I won't let anything happen to you." said Merlin under his breath whilst hardly moving his lips so Morgana couldn't see or hear him.

Merlin untied Arthur's – or should he say his own – red neckerchief from Arthur's neck. Then he put it over his eyes. After he did that, Merlin ripped some of the hem of his tunic off and gagged Arthur with it.

_Why have I let Merlin do this to me? _thought Arthur feeling betrayed.

_Because you still believe in Merlin; you trust him. _replied the voice inside his head.

_I always knew there was something different about him…. _thought Arthur.

**What will happen with Arthur? Will he accept Merlin's magic? Find out next chapter! The update will be sooner guys, so please review!**

**Translations:**

•_**FacMerlin's magicae amittere tempero. Make Merlin's magic lose control. **_

**(I now see why in the fanfic _'The Unknown Legend of Lady Briana'_, Briana has a bracelet that's called a '_tempero'_ and it helps control her magic. It now makes sense. :) By the way that is a great story by _'Aislinn101'_. Well done!)**

•_**Potesta tempero est amissa pro quidam tempore. The power to control is lost for some time.**_

**Please review!**


	7. Chapter 6: The Big Talk 'Part One'

**A/N: Okay, then. Here is chapter six…. I never thought it would take sooo long just to write this many chapters. I now see how much thought and effort people put in to write 20+ chapters. By the way, this is a shorter chapter. :| Next **_**will **_**be longer though.**

**Warnings:**** Nothing major. **

**Music: **

•***-*-*-*,** **Begin listening to, **_**'Never Gonna Give You Up' **_**by**_** 'Ashley Tisdale'**_** (if you read at the same speed as me the song will end early).**

•***-*1*-*,** **listen to, **_**'Big Time Rush – Theme Song'**_** (I know it's a T.V. shows theme song but it goes pretty well with this part of the story. Anyway, the T.V. show **_**'Cold Case' **_**has its theme song as**_** 'Nara' **_**but I have still used that).**

• ***-*2*-*,****listen to, **_**'My Life Would Suck Without You' **_**by **_**'Kelly Clarkson' **_**(will finish early). **

**Go to my YouTube channel for a playlist - link is on my profile.**

**And everyone is a bit OOC but I don't mind. :) This is kind of a non-serious story.  
**

**Now please read! :)**

**Chapter Six: The Big Talk 'Part One'**

***-*-*-* **"Morgana, can you please take the horses to the stables." said Merlin as he motioned in the direction of them. "I need to take Merlin to my father so that he can be trialed."

"Okay, I will meet you there." she said with a devilish smile. Morgause's scheme was working _so_ well. Everything was going according to plan. She would have expected that meddling Merlin to thwart their plan again. But it seemed this plan was foolproof.

Merlin inwardly grinned when the witch said those few words; Morgana _actually_ trusted him with Arthur. She would soon regret it, though. The sisters' plan would fail once again.

Merlin clutched onto Arthur's arm and began walking him toward the Great Hall whilst Morgana took the horses reins and strolled toward the stables.

Once she was out of sight Merlin stopped walking. He gently pulled down Arthur's blindfold so that his eyes wouldn't burn and could adjust to the sun. Then he unknotted his gag and threw it on the stone ground. After that, Merlin moved behind Arthur and untied his wrists.

"Keep your arms behind your back, just in case Morgana comes back." said Merlin in a serious voice. He gently grabbed Arthur's right arm again and continued walking.

"Why did you untie me?" asked Arthur curiously.

"Because you're my friend." said Merlin in a kindhearted tone as they walked through the courtyard.

Arthur was utterly baffled. Why was Merlin so god damn _caring_ and _considerate?_ Didn't he realise that he might not be friends with him again? Merlin was a bloody sorcerer!

"You're a sorcerer." said Arthur randomly.

"Yes, I know – was a sorcerer, though," Merlin wanted to correct _sorcerer_ to _warlock_ but now was hardly the time, "a certain someone now has my magic." Merlin smiled at Arthur.

"Ho– … how could you?" he only just managed to choke the words out.

"Arthur, I had no choice in this…," said Merlin with a soft sigh, why did everyone assume that he had an option? Well, he is a riddle wrapped up in a mystery, after all – as Gaius puts it.

Merlin then moved his head to his right so he could look into Arthur's eyes. He could see sorrow and anger in them. "I was born with magic, just like you were born a prince."

"What? You were?" asked Arthur bewildered. He thought that sorcerers had to practice magic to become magical. Obviously, this wasn't always the case.

"I could move objects around the room, before I could even speak." said Merlin turning away from Arthur's blue eyes.

There was silence for a while, until Arthur spoke again. He turned his head to Merlin. "Why aren't you evil if you have magic?" They were now walking through the kingdom's many corridors.

Merlin chuckled softly. "Well, I am glad you don't think I am evil. Not all sorcerers are bad, you know. I am living proof of that," Merlin took a glimpse at Arthur and he noticed that he still had a perplexed look on his face so he decided to try to unconfuse him a bit more. "Magic is not evil. It is the person who uses the magic, who is good or not," he paused, "Let's put it this way. Do you think that a sword is evil? Of course it's not," said Merlin answering his own question. "The person who wields the sword is the one who is bad."

Arthur nodded. He now understood that not all sorcerers were evil. He had just only seen evil ones in action; probably because of his father's unfair law. He now knew that Merlin was a _good _sorcerer. He could even see it in the boy. How could someone so happy and cheerful be _evil?_

"I think I understand now." said Arthur. Merlin nodded in agreement and stopped walking; this caused Arthur to halt too. The two boys' had finally reached the Great Hall.

"What are you going to do once you're inside of there?" asked Arthur interestingly whilst nodding towards the huge, oak door.

"I'm not sure yet but one thing's for certain. I definitely am _not _going to turn you in." Merlin let go of Arthur and pushed the door open. He walked a few steps forward and Arthur followed suit.

Merlin saw King Uther standing not too far away from him and noticed that Morgana was already there and standing behind the king, on the right side of Uther. How she arrived so quickly, he had no idea. At least Arthur still had his hands still held his hands behind his back, though. This was convenient because Uther thought he was just holding his arms that way and Morgana thought he was still restrained.

Merlin took a step forward; it was as if he was shielding Arthur from Morgana's evil glare.

"Morgana has told me that you have some very important news for me." said Uther raising an eyebrow and looking up at Merlin. He put his hands on his hips.

"Uh … Yes … yes I do," stammered Merlin. He would have to make up something very quickly but what could he make up that was important….

_Oh no, _thought Arthur worryingly. _Merlin can never pull off lies…._

All of a sudden, an idea hit Merlin but he had to make it look convincing. It was always so obvious when he lied. What was it that Arthur had once told him…? That's right, he shuffled, fidgeted, stuttered and looked away when he fibbed. Merlin had to get this right; it was between life and death.

Merlin stiffened his legs so it would be harder to move them. This would prevent his shuffling. He then put his arms firmly by his side. This would put a stop to his fidgeting. He thought about what he was going to say so he wouldn't stutter and then fixed his eyes on the king so he wouldn't look away. Merlin was now ready to begin telling his dishonest news to King Uther – which kind of meant it wasn't really news at all…. But Uther didn't need to know that.

***-*1*-*** "I thought we agreed not to tell him, Morgana," said Merlin as he gazed away from the king and shook his head so that he gave the image of looking disappointed. This also made it easier for him to lie because he could look away. Morgana only had a puzzled look on her face, though. Luckily, Uther had his back to her or he mightn't have been so fortunate with his dishonesty. "Well, we didn't really want to tell you, sire but since it seems Morgana has already given some of the surprise away, I may as well…."

_Ha! He is actually lying convincingly! I taught him well, _thought Arthur merrily; even though he knew he didn't really teach him that much. Arthur only pointed out some of his faults. Merlin was right; he was a quick learner. _I wonder what he is going to lie about, though…._

"Oh?" said Uther bamboozled as to where this was leading.

"I am going to tell you that…," Merlin paused for a moment so he could let the suspense rise a little. Merlin let out a huge grin. "We're all having surprise party for you!" he shouted joyfully as he threw his hands up in the air.

Arthur then threw his hands out to his sides just to horrify the annoying sister that he never had, even more. She wouldn't have expected Arthur's wrists to be untied.

Arthur grinned smugly at the sight of Morgana's face when she saw his freed hands; he was frustrated that she had just betrayed Merlin's friendship without a moment's hesitation. Arthur knew they weren't really friends anymore but to let someone die because you didn't like them – that was just out of the question. Therefore, he decided to traumatise Morgana a bit.

Morgana had expected that Merlin – who she still thought was Arthur – would have removed his blindfold and gag but she didn't anticipate him to let the warlock walk around without even restraining him.

_Merlin must have convinced him that he was supposedly a 'good' warlock. _she thought angrily. _I should have never left those two alone._ The witch scowled at Arthur irritably, why had she been so foolish in trusting him with something as important as this? All he had done was take her for a ride. Morgana was so close to getting rid of Merlin forever. What ever was she going to tell her dear sister? She couldn't just say that she'd not been able to complete a simple task like this. What was worse was that it was going to be even more difficult to rid of the prince when he now knew about Merlin's magic and was absolutely okay with it.

Whilst Morgana was having a mental argument with herself, Merlin was thinking over everything that had just happened. He had just convinced Arthur that not all magic was bad! It felt like the happiest moment of his entire life. His destiny had not been failed, but what's more, he still had the prince's friendship! Merlin had come up with the idea because he remembered Arthur telling him, a little while back, that it was going to be his father's birthday soon. _God, bless him. _he thought gratefully.

Merlin looked cheerful, Arthur looked amused, Morgana looked hateful and Uther looked confused.

"Well, thank you for enlightening me, Arthur but it's not much of a surprise anymore, is it?" said Uther now smiling as he slowly began pacing the room.

"We all couldn't wait until this exciting day, sire. But I guess the anticipation was just too much for, _Mor_gana." said Merlin catching a certain witch's eye and smirking at her horror-struck face.

_He's really done it this time…. _thought Arthur amused at Merlin's actions.

_What am I going to tell my sister? _thought Morgana horrified.

_I wonder what interesting things are going to occur on my birthday this year…. _thought Uther gleefully.

_I can't believe I just pulled off that lie! Arthur would be proud. _thought Merlin whilst grinning madly.

"Well, I think I better get going now…." Merlin winked at Morgana. "Come on, Merlin." he said turning around and walking toward the huge, oak door. He waved Arthur to come with him and the boy followed suit; they both left the Great Hall with cheerful looks on their faces.

**-(|~|)-**

"Wow, I can't believe you just pulled that lie off!" said Arthur excitedly as he walked by Merlin through the castle corridors.

"Nor can I, but I have to admit that, I did learn from the master." said Merlin happily.

"You do realise we'll have to actually give him a party now…." said Arthur now looking glum.

"It's not like he wasn't going to have one, anyway…." said Merlin back to Arthur.

"True…. Oh, and Merlin, I think we need to have a little chat…." said Arthur not sounding as cheerful anymore.

"Yeah. Well, okay…. What do you want to talk about?" asked Merlin even though he already knew the answer.

"Not here. Let's go somewhere else…." said Arthur whilst trying to think of a place they could both go unaccompanied.

"Where?" asked Merlin curiously.

"Uh…. The forest," said Arthur as the thought hit him. "Come on, we will go now." said Arthur picking up his pace.

"If you say so…." Merlin knew that Arthur would want to talk about his magic. He was actually looking forward to discussing it; he felt so alone when nearly everyone thought he was just a clumsy, bumbling, dimwitted servant.

The two boys walked down the castle stairs and into the courtyard. They then made their way to the stables. Once they arrived, both boys chose their usually chestnut-coloured stallions'. They mounted onto their horses and trotted out of the castle, side by side.

**-(|~|)-**

***-*2*-***The two boys had been galloping through the forest for about half an hour now. Although, Merlin was riding next to Arthur, he had no idea where exactly they were going. He just had to trust Arthur's sense of direction or else he would be utterly lost.

Merlin didn't really mind it, though; he was just glad that Arthur had accepted him. He also wasn't really concerned about where they were going because he loved horse riding. He would do it nearly everyday if he had the time. It made him feel free and like he didn't have a worry in the world. He could smell the delightful aromas as he passed them and feel the cool wind on his face. He loved every second of it. What made it even better was when he rode next to Arthur, not as a servant but as a friend.

Arthur felt the same way about horse riding but probably not as strongly as Merlin. After all, he had been riding almost all his life and didn't find it as exhilarating anymore. One thing, Arthur _did_ enjoy about it was that it was something his best friend and him could easily do. Merlin may fall off _a lot _but once he was at a good speed he could sometimes ride even better than, Arthur.

Arthur then saw a grassy clearing ahead of himself and Merlin. He decided it would be a good place to stop _and _make a fool out of Merlin.

When they began riding through the clearing, Arthur quickly halted his stallion in the middle of it and Merlin whipped passed him in a great, big blur.

"Merlin!" shouted Arthur as Merlin continued riding. "We have arrived now! But over here!" Arthur gave a soft chuckle of amusement; Merlin hadn't even noticed he was not next to him anymore.

Merlin jerked the reins of his horse to make it go into a slow trot. He then turned his horse around and made his way back to Arthur.

The warlock would bet all his money that the prince had only stopped like that for his own amusement. When the boy finally reached Arthur, he stopped his horse from moving and dismounted to the grassy ground.

"You could have warned me you know…." said Merlin.

"Well, it wouldn't have been nearly as amusing if I hadn't." said Arthur with a grin.

The servant just smiled. He would have made a whole lot of money if he had made that bet real. However, one thing better than money had just happened. The boys crazy bantering was back on. It was just something they had always done, and Merlin had just hoped he wouldn't lose it when Arthur found out he was a warlock. Thankfully, he had obtained his wish.

**Part Two will be out soon :)**

**Please review :D**


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